Grace
by SashaAlexanders
Summary: Kate Todd is a single, teenage mother who is used to doing it alone. What happens when she goes off to college and meets somebody who's help she cannot seem to refuse? Tony DiNozzo is the typical, 19 year old college student. He loves parties, he loves girls, but he one thing he never anticipated about college was falling for somebody who was his complete opposite. Please R&R.
1. Chapter 1

The screams coming from room 153 matched those coming from various other rooms on that hospital ward. They were all screams of pain, some more vulgar and more pain filled than others, but still, they were all the same cries of women in labour. They were the same, but they were also different in every way.

The pain-filled screams coming from room 153 were not coming from a married woman in her 20s or her 30s, they were not coming from a woman who was being cheered on or comforted by their husbands, they were not coming from a family who had planned to have a child. No, they were coming from a 17 year old girl who's life had drastically changed one cold, dark night over winter break.

"It hurts so bad!" Kate cried, her hand squeezing her mothers as the pain got stronger and stronger as she herself only got weaker and more tired. Her dark brown hair was matted to her head in a thick layer of sweat, her face red and in a constant state of being scrunched up in pain.

She was smart, she had read all the birthing books, gone to several classes... why she thought that she could do it all naturally, with only her mother's hand, gas and air to ease her pain, right now, was beyond her. She wanted an epidural, but as she had asked almost an hour ago, when her pain had reached intolerable highs, she was too far gone.

"C'mon baby, you're doing great!" Kate's mother, Martha, kissed her youngest childs sweat drenched cheek.

_'Great?! Great?!_' Kate thought to herself with a laugh. _'I would not call being a single mother at the age of 17, great. No, what I am is far from great!'_.

It hadn't been an easy 9 months, not for Kate, not for her parents, not for any of the family really. When their barely 17 year old daughter had come to them, telling them she was pregnant, Martha and Richard Todd's world almost seemed to collapse. She was their baby... And now, still only a child at 17, she was going to have one herself. Of course, being devout Catholics, a termination was out of the question. As hard and embarrassing as it was that their daughter, their 17 year old child, was going to have a child of her own (out of wedlock) and raise it by herself, Mr and Mrs Todd were about to be Grandparents for the first time, and no matter what, they already did and always would, love Kate's unborn child.

She hadn't said much about how she had gotten pregnant, she had hid it from pretty much the whole family (bar Rachael and her mother, Rachel whom she had told when Rachael found her throwing up one morning, and her mother had figured it out and promised not to tell her Navy Seal father until Kate was ready) until the 6th month when she finally broke down, not being able to take wearing baggy clothes and getting called 'fat' by her older brothers anymore. But, what could she say? Not the truth. No, the truth, that her brother's best friend had snuck into her room over Christmas break and violated her in the worst way possible. No, she couldn't tell her family that. She had _only_ told Rachael, but had swore her elder sister and best friend to absolute secrecy, the secret almost tearing their strong bond, but somehow bringing them closer. No, what Kate had told her family was sort of the truth, she had said she had gotten drunk at some stupid party and hooked up with some random guy. She just failed to mention that the party in question was their family's annual Christmas party and the random guy was Joe, her brother's, college room mate, and that she was completely sober and it was not at all consensual.

She hated herself for lying, but she did not want to dwell on the past. She didn't want to think about that night ever again, and even though her child would be an every day reminder of it, she still loved it and would be nothing less than a loving mother.

As Kate's vice like grip on her mother's hand tightened, she let out one last blood curdling scream before the screams of another filled the room.

"Well done" the doctor smiled from between the new mothers legs. "It's a girl"

A tear rolled down Kate's cheek as the screaming, red baby was handed to her. _Her_ baby. She was a mother now, and nothing in the world would ever compare to the immense feeling of love and pride that washed over Kate (and also her mother) as she laid eyes on her daughter for the very first time.

"H-hey, baby girl!" Kate smiled down at her beautiful (slightly bloody) child, her daughters screams now turning into quieter, softer coos. "I'm your momma and I'm gonna do everything I can to give you a good life. I promise. I'm gonna protect you and love you and try and make you as happy as you're making me. You're all I've got, baby girl. Welcome to the world"

Martha's heart broke for her daughter in that moment. The past few months she had been so proud of Kate, Kate had gotten herself several jobs, kept her grades up (higher than average, top of most classes), stayed in school despite all the name calling and whispering and most importantly, hadn't done what most teenagers would do and fall back and rely on her parents to bring the child up. Kate was adamant that this was her child and that she would do everything herself. And she had. She had bought the stroller, the car seat, all the clothes and other things babies need herself. The only thing she had not bought was the crib, which her mother and father had bought for her... Well, technically bought for their unborn grandchild, but still, Kate was extremely grateful.

There was no doubt in anyone's minds that Kate would be anything less than an amazing mother, even at the age of 17.

_**This is just a little something I've been wanting to write for a while now, I kinda got inspired by another story I was reading and wanted to put my own spin on it and do it for Kate and Tony. I people like it, I will continue. Please review and lemme know what you think:) Thank you. **_


	2. Chapter 2

She still couldn't believe it, even now as she was unpacking her final box, it still didn't seem real to her. The fact that she had gotten into college, granted, Ohio State wasn't her first option, but still, the fact that she had even gotten into college amazed her.

Sure she had the grades, more than had them, she graduated high school top of her class, even with a baby, and she had more than enough extra curricular activities... But she was a mother. A single mother, who had only just had her 18th birthday a few months ago. And still, even with a six month year old daughter, she had still made it into college.

Once Grace had come along, Kate had quit her job at the bowling alley, even though it paid more than her job at the cafe, the cafe had better, more flexible hours, and she had continued working there until the day she was set to leave for college. Granted, it was January, and she was starting later than most, but it was still something amazing for Kate.

She was lucky too. Given her situation, the college had given her a dorm room all to herself. It was a pretty nice room too. There was only one bedroom which she and Grace would be sharing, a bathroom with both a shower and a bath (Kate sent up several prayers thanking God that she did not have to use the communal showers down the hall) a small kitchen complete with a fridge and oven, and a rather spacious living room. And once Kate had moved all their things in, it started to feel like home. Grace's cot was set up next to the bed, their clothes were neatly hung up in the wardrobe, the playpen where Grace was currently snoring loudly was set up in the living room, as was the TV and small sofa (which Kate's parents had bought for them and told Kate she was not allowed to argue). Sure, there were still some things like a kitchen table, chairs and amongst other things, food, which Kate still had to get, but all in all, Kate was pretty proud of her new home.

The drive from Indiana to Ohio had been a long and stressful one, especially with a teething 6 month baby, it had taken longer than planned and Kate was thankful that her parents had accompanied her. They had left just under an hour ago, once everything was more or less unpacked. Saying goodbye to their daughter and granddaughter was hard and heartbreaking to say the least, but Kate promised she would see them as much as she could and she would phone them at least twice a week. As much as she wanted to be strong and independent, deep down there was still a small part of her that was a scared little girl. There probably always would be.

As Kate slumped down on her sofa, her mobile began to ring. She answered it as quickly as she could, hoping the shrill beeping had not woken her sleeping daughter up.

"Hello?" Kate yawned, kicking off her tatty converse and lying down.

"Hey, little sis" Rachael smiled down the phone, Kate couldn't see her sister smiling, but she would hear it in Rachael's tone.

"Hey, Rach!" Kate smiled back.

"How's everything going? Are you all moved in?"

"More or less, yeah. I've still got to get a few things, but they can wait. What about you? How's your second year of college treating you?"

"Good... It's fine. How's my Gracie doing?"

"She's sleeping, for now" Kate replied with a huff, looking over at her daughter. "She's teething right now so she's screaming pretty much all day long" Kate pinched the bridge of her nose. "She misses her big Auntie Rach though, just like her Momma"

"Awwww, I'm sorry, Katie... I miss you guys too. Mom and Dad phoned me before though, they said your dorm is nice, so I suppose that's a good thing?"

"Yeah, it is. I was lucky to get it!I don't start classes for another week so hopefully we'll be settled in by then. I just hope the other people on my block don't have raging parties every single night, its hard enough to get Grace to sleep at night as it is without drunk people and pounding music... Speaking of parties, its a Saturday night, why are you on the phone to me and not at some frat party?" Kate laughed.

"Most people are still on Winter break. And besides, I'd choose my baby sister and my niece over a dumb party any day!"

"Aw, Rach" Kate smiled.

She really did love her big sister. There was only 18 months between them and they had always been close. They were more than siblings, they were best friends. They told each other everything and had total trust in the other. When Rachael had gone away to college, it was the hardest thing either of them had ever gone through (little did Kate know that a few months later she would go through even harder times) and they texted/phoned/skyped each other every day for the first few months. Now they were lucky if they found the time to call each other once a week, so the little time they did have together, they treasured.

"Anyway, Kate, you sound really tired and aren't you supposed to sleep when your baby sleeps and all that crap? So, I'll let you go. I love you so much little sis, Gracie too. Give her a big hug and kiss from me! I'll try and call you soon! Be safe"

"I love you too, Rach. I will, don't worry, and you too. Bye"

And with that, Kate hung up. She debated on whether or not she should wake her daughter up, but it had been a long and stressful day, especially for Grace, so Kate figured she'd be out for the count all night. Feeling a grumble from her stomach, Kate checked the time. It was almost 8pm and she hadn't eaten since 3pm, and then it was only a bag of crisps so Kate decided that since she had yet to go and buy herself some food, she would order in some Chinese and have an early night. After all, tomorrow was going to be another busy day as she was going to get herself acquainted with her new neighbourhood, ie, finding out where the local supermarket, park, coffee shop, etc were and get to know her way around the campus whilst most people were still at home for Winter break.

_**Oh my gosh, thank you to everyone who had read/reviewed/favourite/followed my story! I didn't expect even one person to read it, so it really means a lot to me! I hope you like this chapter, i'm kind of excited about this story so hopefully it should be updated regularly (well, more frequently than my others... if you've read any of my other fics you will know that updates from me are rare, haha). Anyway, please review and lemme know what you think. Thank you:)**_

_**-Gina.**_


	3. Chapter 3

It was a little after 6am when Kate was ripped from her slumber by the heart wrenching, painful cries coming from her daughter.

"Ssssshhhh, baby" Kate cooed as she picked the screaming child up from her cot. "I know, it know it hurts, sweetie" Kate kissed Grace's soft, light brown locks, giving her daughter her finger to chew on until she made it to the freezer to retrieve the baby's teething ring. "Here you go, Gracie" Kate put the bright orange frozen ring in her daughters' burning mouth. "That's better isn't it?" Kate kissed her chubby cheek as Grace munched on the ring, her screams softening as the frozen object soothed her gums. "You're a big girl now, Gracie! You've already got one tooth" Kate held up one finger in front of a now quiet Grace, emphasising the word 'one' and her finger. "You wanna watch some cartoons while Mommy makes your breakfast?" Kate asked with wide eyes, a giant goofy smile and a silly baby voice, placing Grace down in her playpen, turning on the TV and heading back to the kitchen to prepare her daughter some breakfast, it was only mashed Bananas and a bottle of milk but Grace was 7 months and wasn't fussy. Kate shuddered at the thought of her breakfast; left over Chinese food.

Grace, thankfully, had inherited most of Kate's genes. She was literally a miniature Kate in every way, the only things differing between mother and daughter were the colour of their eyes and hair. While Kate had deep, dark, complex brown eyes which often changed to a deep green depending on her mood or the lighting, Grace had bright blue eyes, which, as she was getting older and more developed, were turning slightly gray in colour. Like her mother, she had thick, brown hair, only hers wasn't as dark as Kate's, it was a lighter brown, some would even say she was blonde, but like her eyes, as she was getting older, her hair was getting darker. She really and truly was a beautiful baby.

"We're gonna go and buy some food today!" Kate smiled, tickling her daughter's chubby tummy as she changed Grace's nappy. "And then, we're gonna go out and look for the closest park because we both know how much you love the swings, don't we? Yes we do! A-yes we do!" Kate blew raspberries on Grace's belly, melting at her daughter's hearty laugh.

Once Kate had changed Grace's nappy, she dressed her in a thick pink and white striped jumper with a cute zebra on the front, thick wollen white tights under a pair of jeans, a pink pair of baby booties and a bright pink bubble coat with a picture of a poodle on the pocket. It was after all, winter, in Ohio and the snow was still thick. Kate grabbed an extra baby blanket and Grace's hat and mittens before they left.

She was used to all the looks by now. She expected them. She was a teenage mother after all. And to make things worse, Kate was only short and looked younger than she actually was. At first, all the looks, all the comments, the whispers, the judgements hurt and Kate had ended up crying herself to sleep on more than one occasion, but now, now she had learnt how not to care about what other people thought about her. Sure, it was hard, but she loved her daughter and she was proud of not only Grace, but of herself too. She wasn't the worlds greatest mother, but she tried, and she loved her daughter more than anything else in the world, and that was all that mattered.

It took Kate a while to find a supermarket for several reasons, and she smiled inwardly at her own small triumph of finding one all by herself. Grace happily mumbled as she sat in the shopping trolley, chewing on another teething ring, her hand covered with a yellow woollen mitten as Kate walked up and down the aisles, getting all the food and other supplies they needed. She could feel the judgemental eyes boring into her, but she just brushed them off and kissed her daughter's chubby cheek.

She found, that most of the people who judged her, seemed to be youngish women. Men didn't really seem to pay any attention to her, but she always found that the looks and judgements would come from teenage girls up to about 40/50 year old women. However, she loved it whenever an elderly person would notice she had a baby, because even if they did have some preconceived idea or judgement about her, they would always smile at her and her daughter and often strike up a conversation. Today was no different.

As Kate stood in the queue, her cart half full of food - most of it for Grace- she noticed an elderly woman, with nothing more than a loaf of bread and a pint of milk behind her.

"You wanna jump in front of us?" Kate asked, a warm, dimply smile spread across her face.

"Are you sure?" The tiny, wrinkly woman asked.

"Positive" Kate smiled again. "You've only got two things, we've got a cart-full"

"Oh, why thank you, dearie" the old woman smiled as she moved to stand in front of Kate. "And what's your name, cutie?" She asked, smiling at Grace.

"This is Grace" Kate smiled while they waited for the two other people in front of them.

"Oh what a beautiful name!" The elderly woman exclaimed.

"Thank you" Kate smiled.

"Is she yours?"

"Yeah" Kate replied, her voice subconsciously lowering.

"She's a bonnie little girl, beautiful eyes! You're doing a wonderful job, young lady. Keep it up!"

Kate couldn't help but smile at the random strangers comment. It was something she really needed right now.

"Thank you" Kate smiled again, her index finger stroking Grace's warm, rosy cheek. "I try my best".

By now, the elderly woman's things had been scanned and bagged and she said goodbye to Kate and Grace, telling Kate once again that she was doing an amazing job and to keep it up before hobbling out of the store and into the freezing, January air.

On the way to the supermarket, they had passed a park and once all the food was in the boot of Kate's car and Grace was securely in her baby car seat, they headed back in the direction of the park. It was still before 12pm on a Sunday, so naturally, there weren't many people out. Kate pushed the stroller through the park, happily chatting away to her daughter. Despite the cold weather and the snow, Kate was taking Grace to feed the ducks. There was something about ducks that made Grace crazy happy. Maybe it was the way they walked, or the way they quacked, or even the way they looked, but whatever it was, they always made Grace clap her hands and kick her feet in pure excitement and she'd often laugh so much she'd end up crying.

"We're gonna go and see if we can find the ducks, baby" Kate smiled, Grace immediately picking up on the word 'duck' and her face lit up.

After they had found the ducks, fed them, and Grace had laughed at them hysterically for about 15 minutes straight, Kate continued walking around the park, hoping that the prettiness of it would be enough to keep her daughter happy and entertained for a bit. They had been slowly walking for almost an hour when they reached the other side of the park, and Kate was frozen and the sight of an open coffee shop across the street seemed like a mirage to Kate at this very moment in time. As she picked up her pace, her eyes fixated on the coffee shop, she almost ran into someone.

"Oh my Gosh, I'm so sorry!" Kate exclaimed as she realised she almost knocked over a man with her pram.

"No worries. I should have been looking where I was going" the man replied, his face hidden under his hood. "Sorry again!" He shouted as he replaced his earphones and continued jogging.

Kate shrugged it off and continued to the coffee shop, her mouth already watering for a vanilla latte. She sat at a corner booth which was out of the way and was about to fold up the pram when a man, who Kate presumed was the owner, told her not to be silly and to leave it up. He was an older man, in his 60s, Kate assumed. He had a kind face and an even kinder smile. There was something about this old man that seemed safe. Maybe it was because he was British? Whatever it was, Kate knew within five minutes that she would be spending a lot of time in this place.

"So, what can I get you?" The old man, who's name tag read 'Ducky' (his name alone seemed to be a good sign) asked.

"Uuummm, just a vanilla latte please" Kate smiled.

"Nothing for the little one?" Ducky asked, not in an accusing manor though.  
"Maybe just some warm milk?" Kate asked.

"Sure thing" Ducky smiled, I'll be back shortly.

As Ducky left to go prepare Kate's order, she took her daughter out of her stroller and sat her in her lap, while she rooted around the giant black diaper bag for one of Grace's toys. Just as Ducky returned with a tray full of coffee, warm milk and two muffins, Kate whipped out a green plastic spoon that Grace loved to chew on and bang on every surface possible.

"On the house" Ducky smiled, pushing away Kate's hand as she took out her purse.

He couldn't help but notice it was empty. Not that he was only giving Kate the free food because she seemed broke, he was going to give her it on the house anyway, that's why he upped her orders to a large and added two muffins. She seemed like a lovely young lady and it was nice to do nice things for people.

"Oh no, I couldn't!" Kate protested.

"Nope, I insist" Ducky smiled again before walking away once again.

Kate poured the warm milk into an empty bottle whilst simultaneously bouncing her daughter up and down on her lap.

"You hungry?" Kate asked, stroking Grace's soft, brown locks of hair before handing her daughter the bottle, holding the end of it herself while Grace guzzled the warm liquid down.

A few minutes into feeding her baby, her mobile began to ring. Awkwardly, Kate took it out of her pocket with one hand and then held it to her ear with her shoulder.

"Hello? Katie? You there?" Her brother's voice rung through the other end of the line.

"Rick?" Kate asked, she hadn't seen her oldest brother in months. He was 26 and like their father, was in the Navy.

"Yeah, Katie. Is this a bad time?"

"Sorta. I'm in the middle of feeding Grace right now, can I call you back in like ten minutes?"

"Sure thing".

Once Grace had finished the bottle, Kate grabbed her phone and phoned her brother back. Out of everybody, Rick had probably taken the news of her pregnancy the hardest. He had always been protective of his family, but Kate was his baby sister and even though he was away on a tour when he had found out, Kate had to talk him out of coming back and 'beating the living crap out of whoever did this to her'. Even though Rick seemed to take it the hardest, he (and Rachael) were the only siblings that had supported her. Joe and Tommy had found it hard, and while they tried to put on a nice front for Kate and their parents, their relationship had never been the same since.

"Hey, Rick" Kate smiled once her brother picked up the phone.

"Hey, Katie. How you doing?"

"Good, good. We moved into the dorm yesterday and we've got everything more or less done, haven't we baby?" Kate asked her daughter in that silly, childish tone she reserved for Grace.

"That's good. Well hopefully I've got some leave coming up in a few months so I'll try and visit my baby sister and my niece"

"Oh, Rick! That'll be amazing! Kate squealed in excitement. "Gracie misses her big Uncle Rick!"

"I miss her too!" Rick replied in the same tone as Kate. "Y'know, I miss you too, Kate. I know its hard now and I don't get to see any of you guys that much anymore and I know we had our differences in the past, but you're my little sister, Kate. I worry about you. A lot"

"I know you do, Rick. But honestly, you don't have to. We're fine, for now at least"

"I know you're fine now, Katie but you don't ask for help. From anyone. Ever. I know you see it as a sign of weakness or whatever, but trust me, one day you're gonna need it and as hard for you as it may be, you're gonna need to ask for it, or accept it-"

"-Rick-"

"-no, Katie. Just listen to me, I'm saying this as your big brother. I'm not trying to lecture you and tell you how to live your life, I'm just saying that when you need help, do not be afraid to ask for it. Nobody is going to think any less of you for it. Letting people help you is nothing to be ashamed about. You don't have to come to me, but I just want you to know that the option is there, okay?"

"...okay" Kate sighed. She hated it when her brother was right. "Thank you, Rick. It means a lot. Really"

"Good. Okay. Now, Katie don't flip-"

"What did you do?!" Kate asked in a deadpan voice.

"Nothing!... Well, I may have sent you and Gracie some money. Its not a lot but consider it a late Christmas gift"

"You already gave us Christmas presents!"

"Fine, early Birthday presents then! Look don't be mad, accept it and buy yourself something nice with it, Kate. You're 18, you deserve to act your age every once in a while. I gotta go now, they're calling me back. I love you"

"Love you too"

She hadn't checked her bank account, but when she did, she would get the shock of her life. Rick had sent her almost $7000 and he knew Kate inside out. He knew how she would react; first she would get really mad and try to call him to shout at him and refuse to take it, then she would ignore him for a couple of weeks and then she'd either try and pay him back or be awkward around him for a while because she felt like she owed him. But still, to Rick, it was worth it. Knowing he didn't have to worry about her and Grace starving or not having gas or electric or Kate not being able to afford to put Grace in the creche or Kate not being able to but her growing daughter clothes, not for a few months at least.

Kate ate her muffin, drank her coffee, fed Grace half of the other muffin before wrapping it up and then heading back out the coffee shop and back to her car through the park. It was just after three thirty when she got to her car and it would take her a while to drive home, so Kate threw on Grace's favourite CD and drove back to their new home through the thick Ohio snow.

**_Thank you for all your kind words, I read them all! Please keep them coming:) Next chapter we meet Tony, I promise! I hope you liked it. _**


	4. Chapter 4

"Oh please, Gracie. Not this morning" Kate sighed, pleading with her child.

Today was Kate's first day of lessons and Grace had been up all night, screaming in agony. Kate's first lesson was in half an hour and she still had to get her daughter dressed and drop her off at the daycare facility on the other side of the campus.

It was as if the universe was on Kate's side this morning as after she pleaded with her extra fussy, extra grumpy daughter, Grace finally let Kate get her dressed.

After dropping Grace off at the daycare centre, Kate rushed off to her first class. Psychology. Before Grace had come along, Kate would have taken as many classes as she could and been in every single extra-curricular clubs she could muster, but now she only took the minimal amounts of classes needed to graduate. Before becoming a single mother, Kate had planned on becoming a Secret Service Agent and dreamed of protecting the president, now her sights were set on becoming a criminal profiler.

As Kate entered her psych classroom she realised she was the first one there, bar the professor.

"You must be the new student" the silver haired man looked up at Kate from behind his computer (the monitor of which he had just been banging furiously).

"Oh yeah, sorry. Kate" Kate smiled weakly, introducing herself and seemingly shaking under the man's intense gaze.

"Don't say 'sorry', its a sign of weakness" he said once again, motioning her to take a seat as the classroom began to fill with people and Kate took a seat in the back corner.

As the class went on, Kate learned that the students either did not notice/care there was a new girl in the class or they realised she was the new girl with the baby and began whispering or asking her bluntly about it. She was thankful when Professor Gibbs, or 'Gibbs' as he seemed to go by, put a stop to the whispers and the questions.

All in all, Kate liked her first class, and even though he scared her, Kate immediately realised that she liked Gibbs and had a lot of respect towards him (and him towards her). He was a military man, he still had his buzz cut and he reminded her of her father. Tough on the outside but loving and caring on the inside.

She had found the class hard though, which, as she was starting three months after everyone else, was understandable.

"Miss Todd" Gibbs called just as Kate was about to leave the classroom.

"Yeah?" Kate asked, turning back as the last of the students trickled out of the room.

"How did you find the class?" Gibbs asked, his face kind and gentle and stern at the same time.

"Honestly? I struggled a bit but I'm sure I'll be able to catch up"

"Well that's actually what I want to speak to you about. I run extra classes which you're more than welcome to attend until you're all caught up. They're every Tuesday andThursday 7pm-9pm"

"Oh" Kate said deflated, her voice almost a whisper. "I don't think that'll work for me. See, I've er, well I've got a young daughter and the daycare closes at 6 and its just me so I don't really have anyone to watch her. I'm sure I can catch up myself though, I'm a quick learner"

"I know" Gibbs stated as though it was the most obvious thing in the world. "Bring her along"

"Oh, I couldn't. I mean she's teething right now and screaming at the top of her lungs. I wouldn't want her to distract the others".

"Hhhmmm, well, if you're not comfortable then Abby Scuito runs a study group over at Ducky's Coffee House. I'm sure she'd be more than willing to let you join that".

"Okay, thanks" Kate smiled. "I'll check it out"

It was a little after 9pm on a Friday nightwhen Kate and a sleeping Grace pulled into the parking lot outside her dorm. After dinner, they had gone to the local internet cafe down the road and Skyped her parents and only left when Grace became sleepy and the manager closed the shop.

As well as her sleeping daughter, she also had a huge pile of books in her car. Not just normal books either, they were thick, school textbooks which she was planning on reading so she could get caught up for all her lessons. She hadn't really thought it through. She couldn't very well leave her child in the car while she carried her books and she didn't exactly want to leave Grace alone in her dorm either. It was at least a good 7 minute walk away from the car. So, Kate decided the best option would be to carry them in at the same time. A sleeping baby under one arm and 6 heavy thick, very heavy books under the other.

"Ugh, dammit!" Kate mumbled in frustration as she tried to jam her key into the main door and not drop her daughter in the process. As Kate finally got her key in the door, she dropped her pile of books on the floor, wincing in pain and the thickest one landed on her toe.

"You er, need some help?" An unfamiliar voice asked, bending down to pick up Kate's books.

"No, I'm fine" Kate huffed, snatching the books from the stranger.

"Here, let me" the boy offered, taking the books from Kate.

Just as Kate was about to protest, her brothers (who she was mad at right now for the whole $7000 situation) words rang in her head. 'Letting people help you is nothing to be ashamed about.' And besides, Grace had now woken up and her foot was in agony, if somebody wanted to carry her books for her, maybe it wasn't such a bad thing.

"Jeez, how strong are you?!" The boy winced, the veins in his arms and neck almost popping out as he lifted the books up.

"A lot stronger than I look" Kate said in a quiet tone, more than one meaning behind her words.

"I'm Tony, by the way" he grimaced.

"Kate" Kate replied with a half smile, trying not to wince and grimace herself as she hobbled to her dorm room.

"Nice to meet you, Kate"

"Likewise, you can just drop them there" Kate pointed to her door as she put the key in the lock.

"Nonsense" Tony replied. "Let me at least put them on the table or something for you"

"No it's fine, and besides, I er, I don't have a table" Kate suddenly felt slightly ashamed and embarrassed, pushing open the door and exposing her dorm to this perfect stranger.

"Well I'll leave them on the kitchen counter then"

"Okay, thank you" Kate smiled before she went into her bedroom to put Grace in her cot.

Tony laid Kate's books down and eyed her fridge. He opened the freezer compartment as Kate walked back out of her bedroom.

"Er, Tony?" Kate asked, having no idea why the stranger was rooting through her freezer.

"Yeah?" Tony asked, poking his head around the white door. "Oh sorry, I'm just looking to see if you have an ice pack or something. I noticed you hurt your foot" Kate smiled, although she still felt slightly violated a stranger, however charming and handsome, was rooting through her personal belongings. "What's this?" Tony asked, holding a yellow frozen ring up in the air.

"That's a teething ring. It goes in my child's mouth" Kate said with a slight laugh.

"Oh, well, I have ice packs in my dorm. It's just down the hall. I'll go and get one, you just... Sit down" he said, smiling and pointing to Kate's sofa.

"Really Tony, its fine. You've done more than enough-"

"-Nonsense, Kate" and with that, Tony was out of Kate's dorm and heading to his own before she had the chance to protest once more.

In under five minutes, Tony had returned, icepack in hand.

"Here, lemme take a look at it" Tony offered.

"Why?" Kate asked, eyeing him suspiciously.

"I'll be able to tell if its broken or not" he gave Kate an honest smile.

"Fine" Kate huffed, extending her leg. She almost jumped at his touch. His fingers were soft and warm and the way he held her foot was so gentle and delicate. "So?" Kate asked after a few moments.

"I don't think it's broken, just bruised. Keep the icepack on it for a few hours and it should be okay".

"I will do" Kate smiled. "Thank you, for everything. It means a lot"

"Seriously, there's no need to thank me. Helping out a pretty girl in need is all the thanks I need, I mean, that poor little baby in there wouldn't know what to do if her mom had a broken toe" Tony finished with a cheeky grin.

Kate hadn't even told him Grace's name, and even though he was curious, Tony hadn't asked out of respect. Besides, he had only known Kate for about half an hour, he had no right to go snooping around in her life.

"Ah, well I'm sure she thanks you for the icepack" Kate replied with a big, theatrical smile. "No but seriously, Tony, I really do appreciate it"

"I know" Tony said seriously, standing from the couch and turning to leave.

What Kate did next shocked her. It wasn't like her in the slightest. Especially not the new 'mother' version of her.

"Do you er, want to stay? I can put the kettle on?"

She wasn't looking for sex, Tony knew that. He knew, even after 10 minutes that Kate was special, different and he admired her. A lot.

"...unless you've got other plans, I mean it is a Friday night you've probably got a party or something" Kate started to ramble nervously.

"Sure" Tony smiled, "I'd love to".

_**Not really sure about this chapter, let me know what you guys think! Thank you for all the love and support, it means a lot. Please keep it coming, it will get you more frequent updates;) love ya xo**_


	5. Chapter 5

They had been talking about everything and nothing all night, neither of them remembered the last time they had laughed so much, or enjoyed themselves so much.

About an hour into their conversation, Grace had woken up screaming in pain, and only seemed to settle once Tony had asked if he could hold her. That shocked Kate, her daughter never really took to people so quickly. That was another good sign. As Tony held the now sleeping child, who'd just finished a bottle, Kate smiled and told Tony her name. She had only known him an hour or so, and she already felt very safe and very trusting in his presence.

After Kate had put Grace back to bed, much to Tony's dismay as he would have been more than happy to hold her all night long, they had another coffee and shared day old Chinese food. The party Tony had been invited to long was forgotten about.

"Wait, you're not pre-med?!" Kate gasped.

"No!" Tony laughed, shoving some noodles into his mouth.

"But you examined my foot!"

"Yeah, I run track and play football. I know a thing or two about foot injuries"

"Tony!" Kate exclaimed, playfully slapping his arm.

Tony had then gone on to tell Kate that he hoped to become a cop and that other than the parties and the girls, he didn't really have any desire to be in college. He was only here to try to impress his father. He had then gone on to explain how Gibbs had tracked him down and all but forced him to take psychology - which Tony was now grateful for as he was 1) rather good at it and 2) Gibbs had become like a father to him and he had helped him a lot in the past year.

"Ooohhh, you're lucky to have him in your first year! You must be smarter than you look!"

"Jeez, thanks Tony!" Kate replied dryly, unable to keep a straight face.

"Well, why don't you?" Tony asked a few minutes later, the subject of their conversation changing to Kate's future.

"I can't, not now I have Grace. Don't get me wrong, being in the Secret Service and protecting the President, sure, that's my dream. But I've got a daughter to think about, Tony. The hours are crazy and I'd never see her. I'm not saying she crushed my dreams, because she didn't, I love my daughter more than anything in my whole life, she's just changed them. Profiling people is still as fulfilling as being a Special Agent, and I get to come home to her beautiful face every night" Tony's arm was stretched out along the back of the sofa, his finger tips begging to touch Kate once more as he listened intently to her.

"She's lucky to have you" Tony smiled honestly, and she was. "No, I mean it" Tony said once he saw Kate's face flush. "You're doing this all alone, and you're what, 18? That's amazing, Kate. I've known you like three hours and I've never come across a person as strong or amazing as you. You're better than most adults. You should be proud, Kate" Tony's fingers snaked their way onto Kate's shoulder, giving it a reassuring squeeze.

Kate stayed silent, but Tony could see the sincere thanks radiating from her slight smile and her deep, chocolate eyes.

It was nearing 2am and Kate had been up since 6am, and would most likely be up at 6am, and their conversation was coming to a close. For the past hour, they had sat together, in a comfortable silence, watching some old rerun of The X-Files (a show in which they both liked) but now Kate's eyes were getting heavy in her head and it was getting harder and harder for her to fight the urge to stay awake. Within 5 minutes, Kate lost her fight and fell asleep, her head resting on Tony's shoulder.

"Kate?" Tony asked, once he felt her head on his shoulder.

He was met with nothing more than deep breathing as a reply. He was sure she was snoring. Whatever it was, it was adorable. She looked just like Grace did when she was sleeping!

Not wanting to out-stay his welcome, Tony gently and quietly got up from the couch, Kate stretching out in her sleep as he did so. Noticing she didn't have a blanket around, Tony placed his jacket over Kate's sleeping form and crept out of her dorm. He smiled to himself, not only would his jacket keep Kate warm in her sleep, it would give him an excuse to come back tomorrow and see her again.

When Tony got back to his dorm, he was greeted by a very irritated looking room mate.

"Dude, what the hell happened to you?!" Chris, Tony's room mate and best friend, asked before the door clicked shut.

"Oh, sorry!" Tony exclaimed, suddenly remembering he was supposed to be meeting Chris for the first official college party of the new year. "I got sidetracked"

"Ooohhh, nice!" Chris exclaimed in an excited 'my buddy just got lucky' tone, holding out his hand for Tony to high-five.

"It was" Tony smiled, taking a seat in the lounger opposite his friend, "but not in that way"

"What dya mean?" Chris asked, completely dumbfounded.

"I mean, I met a girl but I didn't bang her"

"Come again? You, Anthony DiNozzo, met a girl, on a Friday night, and did NOT have sex with her?" Chris' eyes were wide in shock, not believing his ears right now. "What the hell happened to you over winter break"

"Nothing!" Tony exclaimed defensively, feeling slightly annoyed with his friend (however true his point was). "She's different, that's all"

"She hot?" Chris asked.

"Very" Tony said matter-of-factly.

"Then why aren't you gonna bang her?"  
"Because" Tony sighed, frustrated. "She's nice. Different. We get along really well. And besides, she has this adorable little kid. I am capable of being friends with a woman, Chris. I don't have to bang every girl I meet!"

"Wait, you met that new chick from down the hall? Seriously dude, you, of all people, hanging out with a chick with a kid and not trying to bang her... I barely recognise you!" Chris scoffed, the amount of alcohol in his system clouding his words and making him out to be a complete tool. Sober, he really was a nice, genuine guy.

"I'm tired" Tony said, standing up and walking to his bedroom, slamming the door slightly as he did.

The next morning was the same as every other morning. Kate was woken up at barley 6am by her daughter's pain filled screams and she began their usual morning routine; plop Grace down in front of the TV with a teething ring while she prepared their breakfasts, feed Grace and herself, jump in the shower with Grace (it was both quicker and easier to have Grace in there with her), dress her, plop her back down in front of the TV while Kate got herself ready for the day and then get on with whatever chores around the dorm needed to be done or whatever work she needed.

It was just after 10am when they heard a knock at the door. Kate was deeply engrossed in one of her psych textbooks that she didn't hear the knocking the first time. Grace was sat happily on the floor playing with her brightly coloured building blocks.

"Tony? Hey" Kate smiled as she opened the door. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine" Tony smiled back. "I just er, came to pick up my jacket" Tony pointed to the sofa.

"Oh right, come in" Kate motioned and Tony gladly accepted the offer.

"Hey, Grace. Remember me?" Tony asked in a goofy voice, bending down so he was eye level with the baby. "So, what have you got planned for this glorious Saturday then?" Tony asked, standing and turning back to Kate.

"Well, I was planning on taking her the park to feed the D-U-C-K-S but this work is taking longer than I thought!" Kate sighed, slumping back in her seat.

"What is it?" Tony asked, pulling the textbook towards himself and reading. "I did this last year, its hard at first but once you get your head around it, its a piece of cake! You need some help?"

"Oh Tony, I couldn't. I'm sure you have better plans for your Saturday!"

"Nope"

"Well, only if you're sure?"

"Positive" Tony beamed, pulling up a chair and explaining Synesthesia, what Kate had decided to write her paper on.  
It only took them about fourty minutes to go through all the key points and Kate finally understood the subject matter. After Kate packed up her books, got both herself and her daughter ready, the three of them headed to the park.

Tony had noticed Kate's cupboards were looking a little bare and had told her that after the park, they would all go grocery shopping.

Walking through the park, they looked like a happy little family. Tony was happily pushing Grace's stroller and chatting nonsense to the baby. He and Kate were unintentionally kind of matching in their dark wash jeans, and black jackets.

"So, what did you do over Christmas break?" Kate asked, looking up at the taller man, the snow crunching beneath their feet.

"Nothing really, I just stayed on Campus" Tony sighed.

"Oh..." Kate swallowed hard, realising this was a touchy subject.

"No its fine... Its, whatever" Tony shrugged it off "What about you guys? How was baby's first Christmas?"

"Oh good lord!" Kate laughed at the memory. "Well, Christmas in the Todd household is busy on any average year. Three older brothers and one older sister, and my mom likes to go all out for the holidays too! Anyway, this year everybody was home, even my dad and my brother Rick Jnr were home, for Christmas day at least and because everybody was home and it was Grace's first Christmas, my mum decided to invite the whole family! All my Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, cousins, you name it, they were there!"

"Jeez!" Tony scoffed finding it hard -near impossible- to picture a Christmas like that.

"I'll say, so anyway, Christmas morning was nice... Things between me and my brothers, well, let's just say ever since Grace came along they've been awkward, but that morning they were forgotten about. Grace loved the tree and all the paper. I think she liked the paper more than her presents because she chewed it all day long! But then when the rest of the family arrived for Christmas dinner, Gracie got a bit overwhelmed and we spent the rest of the day in my bedroom. Still, it was nice"

"That's good to hear" Tony smiled genuinely at Kate.

"I'm excited for next Christmas because by then I'm hoping Grace will have a better idea!" Kate squealed excitedly.

"You can take her to see Santa!" Tony added.

After they'd fed the ducks, Grace was starting to get quite grumpy and grouchy so the three of them headed into Ducky's so Kate could give her a bottle.

Ducky had come to take Tony and Kate's orders as Kate was feeding Grace. He was shocked when he found the pair together but smiled and told them how cute they were together... Even after they told him they were just friends.

He barely knew her, but he felt like he had somehow known her all of his life. There was something about Kate Todd, something incredibly special that just seemed to mesmerise him. Maybe it was how she was different to every single other girl he knew, or maybe it was because she sort of reminded him of his mother, either way he knew that he had made a friend for life in her.

He hadn't even realised it, but a warm and loving smile had spread across his countenance as he got lost in his thoughts.

"What?" Kate eyed him dubiously, bouncing her daughter on her knee.

"Nothing..." Tony cleared his throat, suddenly realising he was staring at Kate.

"Hhhmmmm, sure" Kate narrowed her eyes with a smirk.

"Its just... You kinda remind me of my mom a little, that's all"

"I do?" Kate asked, her eyebrows rising slightly.

"Yeah, you're a good mom and you love Grace more than anything and, I don't know, it sounds silly"

"No it doesn't" Kate smiled, completely flattered and touched.

Last night Tony had explained that his mother had died when he was 12 and his father was never there for him, not really anyway.

Before Tony or Kate could say another word, their conversation was interrupted.

"Tony!" A rather hyperactive and uncharacteristically happy goth ran towards Tony, almost knocking the chair over as she threw her arms around him.

"Missed you too, Abbs!" Tony smiled, his voice strained from Abby's bone-crushing hug.

"Who's your friend?" Abby smiled as she turned to Kate.

"This is Kate" Tony smiled.

"Ooooohhhh, you're gonna be in my study group, right?" Abby's face seemed to light up as she held out a hand for Kate to shake. "Hi, I'm Abby. Nice to finally meet you!"

"Kate. Likewise" Kate laughed nervously, shaking Abby's hand.

"And who is this adorable little thing?!" Abby asked, addressing the baby in a silly voice.

"This is Grace" Kate smiled as Abby held out a finger for Grace to grab.

Grace happily accepted the finger and put it straight into her mouth.

"Gracey, no!" Kate laughed, rescuing Abby's now slobber covered hand. "Sorry about that" Kate seemed to redden in embarrassment.

"Don't sweat it" Abby laughed, sitting in the empty seat between Kate and Tony. "So, how do you two know each other?" Abby asked.

"I saved Kate's life" Tony smiled childishly.

"You did not!" Kate narrowed her eyes at him. "I was trying to juggle a baby and 6 very heavy textbooks and I dropped my books and Tony helped me"

"Ah see, you're forgetting the part where your book landed on your foot and I iced you back to health!"

"Oh yes, how could I forget?" Kate laughed.

"See, I'm a good guy deep down!" Tony looked at Abby.

"Its not me that needs convincing of that!" Abby scoffed.

She had known Tony pretty much from the first day of college over a year ago. Despite them being pretty much polar opposites, they got on well. They were like brother and sister and despite the reputation Tony had earned himself, Abby knew that it was just a front. And by the looks of it, so did Kate.

"Speaking of good guys, how's our old friend and M.I.T. student McGoo coming along?" Tony changed the subject. "Abby's boyfriend" Tony clarified when he noticed Kate looked completely lost.

"Tim's fine, thank you for asking" Abby smiled. As much as he hated to admit it, Tony had a soft spot for Timothy McGee and thought he was a good match for Abby.

The conversation between Kate, Abby and Tony seemed to come easily. Kate and Abby had become somewhat close very quickly and that did not end well for Tony. The two of them had teamed up and teased Tony, Abby telling Kate embarrassing stories about him. As much as he was happy Kate and Abby got along so well, he also hated that Kate and Abby got on so well. The four of them stayed in the coffee shop for hours just laughing and exchanging stories until Kate realised the time and told Abby they had to leave before the grocery store closed.

"Tony, its a Saturday night. You already spent all of your Friday night with me, you don't have to spend your Saturday night too!" Kate exclaimed as they walked around the video shop.

"I know I don't, but I want to" Tony shrugged. "Unless you're sick of me, then I'll leave you be"

"No, no!" Kate exclaimed. "Its just, I don't understand why you would want to stay in and watch movies with me when you could be out partying"

"I don't understand it either" Tony replied cheekily. "No but, seriously Kate, I've known you two days and I already think we're close. Its weird and honestly, I would choose watching some cheesy chick-flick with you than a party any day... They're not all they're cracked up to be y'know. After a while you just grow tired of it"

There was a slightly awkward silence for a few seconds before Kate decided to speak up.

"How about we make a deal, I choose a film and you choose a film. That way everybody is happy"

"I like the sound of that" Tony smiled before walking off in search of the James Bond section.

Six hours, two movies, a pizza and two bowls of popcorn later Kate and Tony found themselves snuggled together under a fluffy brown faux fur blanket on Kate's sofa. At the start of the night, they had started out on either end of the sofa, pizza and popcorn between them but by the end of the first film they were both in the middle of the couch, Kate leaning against Tony, her knee's pulled to her chest and his arm wrapped around her shoulders (it had started off across the back of the sofa and it had somehow worked its way into pulling Kate closer to his body). Neither of them felt awkward or weird, they just kinda felt, right?

As the credits rolled, a very sleepy Kate looked over at Tony. Once she had deducted that he had in fact fallen asleep, she carefully extracted herself from his warm embrace, pulled the blanket up over him, stitched the TV off and silently crept into her own bedroom.

**_Thank you guys so much for the reviews, i'm so grateful for each and evervy one! A lot of people have asked me if Ziva is going to be in the story and if she is, can she not be a bitchy jealous ex type character. I absolutely love Ziva and i'm not sure if she will be in my story or not yet, but if she is I can promise that she will NOT be portrayed in a negative way at all. I am heartbroken Cote is leaving and I just really love Ziva (although I love Kate more as I am a massive Sasha fan:D). Anyway, i'm not really sure about this chapter and I know that I covered a lot in this chapter and I hope you all liked it. Please keep the reviews coming and let me know what you think. Thank you:)_**


	6. Chapter 6

The past few weeks had gone by in a blur for Kate. She had been busy settling into her classes and getting into a new comfortable daily routine for her and Grace. On top of that, Kate and Tony had been spending almost every free moment they had in the company of each other. They did more or less everything together and Tony was basically living in Kate's dorm. When Tony wasn't in class or at the gym, he was at Kate's dorm or at the park hanging out with her and Grace. They had become incredibly close over the past few weeks and were now the best of friends. The same went for Kate and Abby too. Since their meeting at the coffee house and then Kate attending Abby's study group, the pair had connected very quickly - much to Tony's dismay as a lot of their bonding was rooted in embarrassing stories Abby told Kate about him. But, despite Abby spilling all his dirty little secrets, he was happy to see them getting close. It was nice to see Kate seem to relax more and more every day.

"Ugh" Kate sighed, slamming the front door behind her.

Tony had been sitting Grace for the past hour as the daycare had called Kate up last minute asking her to come in for a meeting.

"That bad, huh?" Tony asked from the sea of brightly coloured building blocks surrounding him and the baby on the floor.

"I just, ugh, I can't believe it!" Kate exclaimed, pacing back and forth, pinching the bridge of her nose and breathing heavily. "I just, oh my God!" Kate exclamined again, her eyes brimming full with tears as she turned to face her daughter. Her sweet, innocent little daughter who has happily chewing on a bright green plastic brick, completley oblivious to all the bad in the world.

"Kate?" Tony asked, standing up and walking over to her. "What happened?" he asked, genuinley concerned and interested, his eyes locking with Kate's watery brown ones and his hands rested on her shoulders.

"It's not fair. She doesn't deserve it!" Kate cried as her tears began to flow freely from her eyes and down her creamy, slightly flushed cheeks.

"What is it, Kate? What happened?" Tony asked, cupping Kate's cheeks with his huge hands and wiping them dry with his thumbs.

"They're adding almost another $100 a week to her daycare fees. I can't afford that, Tony. Not if I want to keep her clothed and fed or keep a roof over our heads!"

"What? Why?" Tony asked, completley dumbfounded. _Seriously, how much does it cost to look after a 7 month year old child for a few hours a day?!_

"I don't know...I just- everything was going so well, I guess it must have been going too well because now everything is all turning to crap!" Kate's face reddened more and more by the second, a mixture of anger, sadness and just general worry coursing through her veins.

"Well, what about that money your brother gave you?" Tony asked, trying to the mature, adult thing and give Kate some helpful advice.

"I thought about that, but i've already but half of it in a college fund for Grace and it's no good her being in daycare if I can't afford to go to college anymore..." Kate broke down again.

"Shhhhhhhh" Tony cooed as he pulled her into his chest and wrapped his arms around her tiny form tightly. "It's all gonna be okay" he placed a soft, comforting kiss on the top of her head.

"You don't know that, Tony!" Kate ccried against his chest, her tears staining his gray t-shirt. "I can't ask my parents for money - I won't!... I'm just, I guess i'm just gonna have to go back home and work for another year or so-"

"-no!" Tony held his arms out straight, his hands still on Kate's shoulders so he could look her straight in the eye. The idea of Kate and Grace being almost four hours away... he couldn't bare it. "What if I look after her while you're in class?"

"Tony..." Kate scoffed as though it were the most ridicoulous thing she had ever heard.

"No, Kate. I mean it, I know i'm not exactly the most qualified or experienced person with a baby but i've babysat her before and we're both still in one piece"

"I couldn't ask that of you, Tony. You already do so much for the both of us!"

"You didn't ask, I offered. And besides, it's totally selfish on my part; I can't have my best friend living almost four hours away. Who's gonna cook me real food, stuff with the mini trees and that?" Tony laughed.

"You mean Broccoli?" Kate tried, and failed, to hide the smirk. He always knew how to cheer her up or calm her down.

"See, how am I gonna cope with you living in Indiana?"

"But seriously Tony, i'm sure you didn't come to college with the desire to look after somebody elses baby every day"

"No, I came for the girls, but honestly Kate, I love Gracie and i'm more than happy to do it. You don't even have to pay me!"

"Are you sure, Tony? 100%?" Kate asked, wiping away the last of her tears.

"Of course I am, Kate. If it means you get to stay in college and that I can take away some of your worry, then i'm seriously more than happy to do it" Tony smiled genuinely.

"Oh Tony!" Kate threw her arms around Tony's neck, her grip like a vice. "I don't know how I could ever thank you!" she smiled against his ear.

"Graduate top of your class and make me and Grace proud?" Tony replied, smiling as he kissed the side of Kate's face.

He was so happy right there in that moment, having Kate so close to him, the smell of her shampoo invading his senses and her warmth radiating onto him. Their hug lasted longer than most typical 'friendly' hugs but neither of them cared. It wasn't awkward in the slightest, it just felt... right? Seeing Kate like that, so broken and vulnerable had broken Tony's heart. He knew that Kate never really opened up to people or showed her emotions, and he felt somewhat special that she trusted him enough to show him that side of her. And now, feeling her happiness and her gratefulness, it almost made him feel whole. Like the family shaped void in his chest was no longer empty. He loved Grace and he loved Kate(although he didn't realise just how much he loved her right now) and he would do **anything** to keep them in his life... And besides, it wasn't like he had anything better to do during the day. Most of the few classes he actually took were in the evening and he sent the majority of his days either sleeping or watching movies. It would be nice to send time with a girl that didn't think he was only after one thing too.

"Are you sure you're gonna be okay?" Kate asked, a little nervous about leaving Tony alone with her daughter for the whole day.

It wasn't that she didn't trust him, she did. She trusted him with both hers and Grace's life. It was just that, babies? They're hard work. And sure, Tony had sat Grace before, but never for more than an hour or two.

"We're gonna be fine, aren't we?" Tony looked to the giant blue-eyed infant in his arms.

"Okay... but you call me if anything happens!" Kate replied, stuffing a giant yellow textbook into her bag.

"I promise!" Tony smiled as he ushered an already late Kate out of her front door.

"And if for some reason you can't reach me, there's a list of numbers on the fridge"

"I know!" Tony laughed. "We're gonna be fine, I promise" he shot Kate a honest smile. "But you're not gonne be if you're late for Gibbs' first class" he raised his eyebrow. A look he had mastered after all the times he had received it form Kate.

"Okay, okay" Kate huffed. "I love you, little miss. You be good for Tony, okay! I'll be home later" she kissed her daughters soft brown curls. "I'll see you at lunch" Kate smiled before running down the hall to her first class.

"So... what dya wanna do today, Chubbs?" Tony asked, turning his attention back to the slobbery baby. 'Chubbs' was a name Tony had given Grace one time after he had watched Kate change her nappy. Kate just narrowed her eyes at him, but realised that he did actually have a point and Grace seemed to like it as she giggled and kicked her legs whenever he called her it. "Your mama said you need a bath but I suppose we can do that after you've had your breakfast".

Grace's face lit up at the word 'breakfast'. It was 8:45 in the morning and neither Kate, Grace nor Tony had had time to eat that morning. Thankfully though, Tony had stuffed a granola bar and a banana into Kate's bag when she wasn't looking.

"Hmmmmmm" Tony hummed as he scanned Kate's cupboards. "Your mama usually gives you that gross strained stuff in the mornings now" he said to himself as he looked at the baby who was holding her hands out, trying to grab a jar of baby food from the shelf. "Peas... carrots... apples... strawberries, which one, Chubbs?" Tony took down the jar of Strawberry flavoured baby food and grabbed a plastic baby spoon from the draw before sitting Grace in her highchair.

In his 19 years of life, he had never heard a more beautiful sound than Grace's laughter. He had only ever fed her abottle, and now, as he was feeding her the gross pink food, his heart was melting at the sound of Grace's hysterical laughter. He had no idea why she found the idea of her spoon being an aeroplane so funny, but he knew he would never, ever get enough of hearing the sound of her hearty baby chuckles.

Once the bowl was almost empty, Tony made the foolish decision to give Grace the spoon and see if she could feed herself. Big mistake. As soon as the green palstic touched Grace's hand, she flicked it and started waving her hands about in the air getting pink goop all over the walls, Tony and most surprisingly, the ceiling. As Tony turned to get a rag, Grace reached for her bowl and repeated the same action.

"Grace!" Tony exclaimed, his jaw dropping open in both shock and amazement. He was faced with a bright pink, sticky baby as well as pink sticky walls and ceiling. "If only your mother could see you now!" he couldn't help but laugh as Grace's tongue worked frantically, licking the food from around her mouth. As much as he knew Kate would most probably kill him, he couldn't resist taking a photo of Grace.

After he has snaped several very funny photos of Grace, Tony ran to the bathroom to start running Grace a bath before heading back to retrieve the messy child from her equally messy highchair. Tony didn't really know how to wash a baby, Kate had showed him the other night but it still scared him. He didn't want the water to be too hot, or to drop Grace in the water. As much as he wanted to put off washing her for as long as he could, he knew it couldn't wait. He remembered Kate had tested the temperature of the water with her elbow, so Tony did the same. Once he was happy with the temperature of the water, he placed Grace in her little seat and began to gently wash her. He was just about to was her hair, proud of himself and the good job he was doing when Grace pooped in the bath. Tony had no idea how Kate did it, let alone made it look so easy!

It was now 11:30 and Tony was trying to figure out how to unfold Grace's stroller. He had been trying to figure it out for the past fifteen minutes and decided to give up and just use the 'baby backpack' as he called it. After he had strapped Grace to his chest, he pulled a pink wollen hat over her head an headed out the door. He had decided that he was going to meet Kate for lunch instead of her coming back to the dorm, it was easier for Kate that way... plus Kate's walls were still wet and smelt like Dettol.

As Tony made his way to the café where he was meeting Kate, he realised that Grace was a chick magnet. He had been stopped several times by women who thought he was Grace's father. A few months ago he would have loved all the attention that this was bringing to him, but for some reason he was resenting it and found it to be annoying. He didn't say 'no' when people asked if she was his but he also made sure to say 'we' a lot in hopes of getting away form the women basically throwing themselves at him. He kind of liked implying that he was Grace's father and he had a family, it was nice. By the time he had actually reached the café, Grace had fallen asleep and was now drooling on his coat.

"Kate" Tony's face lit up when he saw Kate smiling, and waving at him. "Sorry we're late" he said with a sigh, unstrapping Grace from around his chest. "Grace attracts the ladies" he laughed as he handed Kate her daughter.

"I hope you're not using my daughter to pick up chicks" Kate laughed half seriously as Grace woke up.

"Of course not!" Tony scoffed. "So, how's you day been so far?" Tony asked, quickly changing the subject.

"Slow" Kate's reply was muffled as she showered her baby with kisses. "I didn't really pay much attention if i'm honest"

"Kate, you know you don't have to worry-"

"-I know, Tony. I trust you, it's just... i'm always gonna worry, no matter what, y'know?"

"Hhhhmm, I get what you mean" Tony replied, looking up from his menu. "Hopefully in a few weeks you won't worry so much" he smiled and placed his hand on Kate's form across the table.

"Hopefully" she smiled back. "So... what have you done today, little miss?" Kate asked, quickly pulling he hand from under Tony's and addressing her baby.

"We've been busy, haven't we?" Tony smiled in a baby voice. "She had some strawberry flavoured goop for breakfast, had a bath... pooped in the bath, played with her blocks, had a nap while Uncle Tony caught up on some work then watched some weird show until it was time to leave, didn't you?"

Grace just chewed on Kate's finger in reply. Before either of them could speak, the waitress came and took their orders. Kate ordered a salad whilst Tony ordered a bacon cheeseburger with large fries and an extra large milkshake - much to Kate's disgust.

"Hey, Tony?" Kate asked, a few moments after they had started eating their lunch.

"Yeah?" Tony asked, his mouth full of burger.

"Where's the stroller?"

"Oh..." Tony swallowed the huge mouthfull to give him time to come up with a plauseable excuse. "I figured i'd use the baby backpack thing, that way I can get around quicker..."

Kate studied Tony's face before smirking. "Couldn't unfold it, could you?"

"...no"

Kate laughed as Tony used his giant burger to hide behind. She could read him like a book.

It was nearing five when Kate returned home for the day. The dorm was unusually silent which worried Kate slightly. As she walked deeper into the room, she could hear the sound of snoring. She looked over to the couch to find Tony passed out, the book 'Goodnight Moon' open on his face and Grace flat out and snoring on his chest. The scene in front of her was so adorable, it looked like something from a movie. Tony had even seemed to lay out pillows and cushions besides the sofa incase one of them fell. Tony must have fallen asleep himself whilst reading to Grace - he did look tired at lunch and God knows Grace is a handful at times. The shrill ringing of the oven timer brought the three of them back to reality. Tony shot up from the couch, his arms wrapping protectivley around a now screaming Grace.

"Huh?" Tony asked, not completley with it yet. "Oh, Kate. You're home?" he asked, handing Kate her screaming baby as he ran to check the oven.

"Yeah, I just got in" she replied, rocking Grace back to sleep. "You didn't have to cook too!" Kate gasped as Tony pulled out a chicken casserole from the oven.

"Eh" Tony shrugged waving it off. "It was the least I could do. I figured you'd be hungry when you got home... oh and Grace chewed on a carrot for a while. I wasn't sure if that was okay, but I figured that it was since it's, well, it's a carrot"

"Oh. It's fine" Kate replied, feeling slightly deflated over the fact she had missed it.

"Here" Tony smiled, handing his phone to Kate knowing that she was slightly upset, despite the fact she hid it like a pro. Kate beamed at the picture of Grace trying to shove a whole carrot into her mouth, her tiny hand could barely fit around the carrot.

As Kate put Grace down in her cot, she came out to find Tony pulling his coat on.

"Oh... you're leaving?" Kate asked, already missing him.

"Well, yeah. I mean, you're home now so I'm not needed-"

"-at least stay for dinner" Kate smiled hopefully. "I mean, you made it after all"

"I don't want to impose-"

"-I want you here, Tony. You're never imposing, I hope you know that. I love spending time with you. You're more than welcome to stay here... unless you've got somewhere else to be-"

"-no" Tony took his coat back off and began setting the table.

Kate smiled as she began to dish out a plate of food for her and Tony.

"Tony?"

"Yeah, Kate?"

"Why do my walls smell like Dettol?"

**_I hope you liked this chapter, what do you think about Tony looking after Grace while Kate is in class? Thank you for the reviews, please keep them coming!:)_**


	7. Chapter 7

Kate sat cross-legged on her sofa, half paying attention to the essay she was writing, half paying attention to her daughter who was playing happily on the floor.

"Are you okay, Gracie?" Kate asked between the pen between her teeth. Kate was expecting at least a gurgle in response, but she was met with nothing more than an odd shuffling sound. "Grace?" Kate asked again, this time taking her eyes away from her laptop and turning to find the spot Grace was previously occupying, now empty.

In the corner of Kate's eye, she saw the pink woollen booties she had dressed her daughter in and quickly followed them. A huge smile spread across Kate's face once she saw Grace crawling for the first time. She was so proud right now, worried, but proud. Still smiling, Kate bent down and picked Grace up, turning her in the opposite direction of her kitchen.

"Clever girl!" Kate exclaimed happily as she watched Grace crawl, rather speedily, around the living room.

Not wanting to miss, nor forget the moment, Kate whipped out her phone and videoed her daughter crawling around the room, shouting words of enouragement. Kate followed Grace around the dorm for almost half an hour before they both got tired. Kate plopped down on the couch and within minutes, Grace had fallen asleep on her chest, snoring loudly. Kate was so happy and proud in this moment. Her baby wasn't a baby anymore. She was growing up so quickly and it seemed like only yesterday Kate had peed on a stick and the smiley face beamed up at her. Soon Grace would be walking and talking and going to school herself. That thought alone scared Kate, there would come a point where both mother and daughter were in school at the same time. Kate just shrugged that thought off, much like she did every other negative thought nowadays, well, negative Grace related thoughts anyway. Kate smiled and kissed Grace's head as she ran her fingers through her sleeping daughters light brown curls.

She was so excited - although the thought that it would be now that much harder to keep an eye on Grace now she could move about was nagging at the back of her mind - but she was still incredibly proud and excited nontheless, and she just had to share the news with somebody.

It was still realtivley early on a Saturday morning, but she knew her parents would already be up, and Rach was home for the weekend too so she figured it would be best to phone home. As she dialed the well known number, Grace stirred in her sleep, slobbered a bit but didn't wake.

"Hello?" Kate's father answered.

"Daddy, hey! It's Katie" Kate smiled. She was glad it was her father who had picked up.

"Katie! Hey! How are you" she couldn't physically see him, but she knew that her father was smiling.

"I'm good, Daddy. A bit tired, but hey, who sleeps in college?" Kate laughed, getting a slight chuckle from her father.

"And Gracie? How's my little grandbaby doing?"

"Actually, that's what I was calling about. She started crawling this morning!" Kate beamed down the phone, knowing her fathers face would be mirroring her own right now.

"Oh, Katie! That's wonderful!" Richard Todd, a military man, squealed down the phone. "Hang on, let me just get your mother and sister. Martha, Rachael, Katie's on the phone!"

Kate heard the excited sound of voices and then a bit of fumbling and beeping and arguing, and then deducted that she had been put onto speakerphone.

"Katie, tell your mother and sister what you just told me!"

"Dad, you don't need to shout. Kate can hear you just fine when you talk!" Kate heard her sister huff at their father who always seemed to shout whenever the phone was on loudspeaker.

"Gracie started crawling!" Kate squealed again in excitement, her smile growing further when she heard the happy squeals from her family.

"Oh, Katie! My little girl is growing up so fast!" Rachael exclaimed excitedly. She really was a proud Aunt and big sister.

"Where is she?" Kate heard her mother ask.

"Right now, shes asleep and drooling on my chest!" Kate laughed. "She tired both herself and me out crawling around the dorm forr almost half an hour this morning!".

"You know what that means!" Rach laughed.

"Oh yeah, time to break out the baby gates!" Kate sighed slightly.

"You need me to drive up and out them all up for you?" her father asked.

"No, it's okay. Tony will do it" Kate said without thinking.

"Tony?" her mother asked.

"He lives in the dorm next door" Kate replied, trying to sound casual.

Kate mentally kicked herself while there were a few moments of awkward silence.

"...anyway, I have to go. I've still got an essay to write and Gracie will be needing some lunch soon" Kate finally broke the silence.

"Okay, we love you both, Caitlin. Call us soon" her mother relpied.

"We love you too, bye" with that, Kate hung up.

Just as she put her phone on the coffee table, Grace stirred once more and this time woke up. She looked up at her mother through big, sleepy blue eyes, her long, perfectly curled eyelashes fluttering open and closed.

"Hello, beautiful" Kate kissed Grace's chubby, rosy cheek. "Did you have a nice nap?"

Grace just smiled the goofy smile she reserved for Kate and instead reached up and grabbed a handful of Kate's silky brown hair and shoving it in her mouth.

"Ah ah, no!" Kate looked down at her daughter, trying to remove the tiny baby's vice-like grip from her hair.

Smiling, Kate plopped Grace in her highchair and gave her a toy to play with as she got Grace some lunch ready. This weeks favourite seemed to be mashed up carrot and swede... not that Kate was complaining, her kid was eating vegatables, but she had had carrot and swede almost every meal for the past five days and refused to eat anything else. She kinda regretted letting Tony give her some on Sunday night. As Kate began to feed Grace with her favourite green spoon, her cell began to ring. Kate darted quickly from her seat to the coffee table and back in time to give Grace her next spoonful.

"Hello?" Kate answered, putting the phone down on the table on loudspeaker, not having time to check the caller I.D.

"Hey, Kate, is this a bad time?" Tony's voice rang through the other end of the line.

"No, not at all. I'm just feeding the little madame, here. What's up?"

"Nothing, I was just calling to congratulate you! I just saw the video!" Tony smiled. Once he had checked the text he had from Kate, he wasted no time in watching the video of Grace crawling for the first time.

"Thank you!" Kate smiled, scraping the bowl for the last of the food... although she figured it would be a lot quicker and easier for everyone if she just gae Grace the bowl and let her lick it clean. So, she did. "But I think you've got your work cut out for you" Kate smirked, and sat back in her chair as her daughter dissappeared behind the green plastic bowl.

"Oh yeah?" Tony scoffed. "How'd you figure that?"

As of Thursday, Tony had been in New York, visiting his Grandmother but he was due home tomorrow night. As much as Tony loved his Grandmother and loved sending time with her, there were two more ladies he missed spending time with. He and Kate had spent most nights on the phone to one another, but it still didn't seem to stop them from missing the other like crazy.

It didn't even strike Kate as odd that she missed somebody whom she had only known for a few months, way more than she missed her own family back home in Indiana. Tony was only away for four days, but to both Kate and Tony, that felt like a lifetime. In the few months they had known each other, they hadn't spent that much time apart and they never wanted to be apart for this logn again!

"Well, because you're the one who looks after her in the daytime. I only spent half an hour this morning chasing her around and im exhausted!"

"Are you forgetting that you're talking to a star track and football player? I run miles every single day, i'm sure I can keep up with Chubbs" Tony laughed. _Seriously, as if an eight month could out-run him, right?_

"Okay, I'll believe that when I see it on Monday night" Kate laughed to herself. "So, how's your Grandma?"

"Old, angry and Italian. She dragged me to church _again _this morning"

Kate could see Tony rolling his eyes, religion and churches really werent his thing. The thought of Tony sitting through a service was actually quite comical.

"Oh, wait till Sunday Morning Mass, you're gonna love it!" Kate laughed.

"Next time I go, i'm bringing you! Maybe she can take you to church instead!"

"Hey, you never know. You could come back tomorrow a changed man"

In reality, churches just reminded him of his mother. Reminded him that she was no longer there, that he would probably never see her again. His mother loved churches, not so much for the religious aspect, but more for the beauty of the buildings. The beautiful stained glass windows, the musky smell, the candles. Every week from as far back as he could remember she and him would go down to the church and help with the homeless and the poor and continued to do so until died. Tony tried to carry on with the tradition, but it just made him too sad and brought back too many memories, so it only lasted a few months. Since then, other than when his Grandmother forced him to, Tony hadn't stepped foot in a church since.

"Why? I'm perfectly fine the way I am" Tony feinged being hurt.

"You keep telling yourself that... hang on"

Kate grabbed two strawberry yoghurts from the fridge and a fresh spoon and started feeding Grace once again.

"Om nom nom" Grace babbled as she ate her yoghurt. If there was one sure way to keep Grace quiet and hapy for a couple of minutes, it was strawberry flavoured yoghurt.

"No, but seriously Kate" Tony started again once he was sure Kate was listening. "My Grandmother would love to meet you and Grace. All she talked about on the cab ride home this morning was you guys. She loves Gracie!"

Most of Tony's visits were spent of him and his Grandmother either watching the TV in a slightly awkward silence, or just talking about boring things such as his studies and aspirations for the future, but this week, Tony found he could not stop talking about Kate or Grace. A wave of proudness washed over him when he showed his 89 year old Grandmother pictures of Grace on his phone... he had the odd picture of Kate on there too. Tony seemed like a proud father/husband, and he was, in a way. Even his Grandmother took a while to understand that he and Kate were 'just friends' and nothing more, and that Grace was Kate's daughter, not his. She was 89 and going senile, but she knew love when she saw it, and she saw nothing but pure love in her Grandson whenever he talked about Kate or Grace. She let him know it too, but of course, Tony denied it and out it down to his Grandmother going crazy. He was glad that she liked Kate and Grace though, despite the fact she had never even met them and only listened to Tony's storied for three days non-stop.

"I'd love to meet her too" Kate smiled. It was true, they had had a phone conversation last night and Kate loved the woman immediatley. "Maybe in a couple of months"

"She'd like that... anyway Kate, I'll let you go. I'll pop in tomorrow if it's not too late"

"Okay, bye"

Thruth be told, Tony would phone Kate again at 7pm that night and they would stay on the phone, just talking about everything and nothing until way after midnight.

Maybe there _was_ something behind what his Grandmother had said...

_**Sorry I haven't been updating much, i'm back in college and i'm so busy lately - UGH! Anyway, I hope you liked this chapter! Thank you so much for all the reviews, please, please, please keep them coming! **_


	8. Chapter 8

Kate felt completely stupid and out of place. She had vowed never to step foot on a football pitch again. Not after that one incident in high school. Emma Stacey, best friend turned, for lack of a less colourful word, cunt, announced to the whole school Kate -who was at the top of the pyramid- was pregnant. Kate cried for weeks until she realised that you never lose friends, you only find out who your real friends are.

She was thankful that she had finally found them. Her friends.

Tony had been asking her to come to one of his games for weeks and Kate had managed to wiggle out of them all by saying she couldn't bring Grace, not while she was so young anyway. But now, thanks to her parents having Grace for the weekend, Kate found herself alone and without plans. Also, without an excuse. So when Tony had asked her to come to his game this Friday night, Kate had no reason to say no. Not one she felt like repeating at least.

Despite the fact that it was almost May, it had been cold the past week and tonight the air was going to drop to a cool and crisp 3 degrees. With a deep sigh, Kate wrapped a multicoloured woollen scarf around her neck before heading out of her dorm and to the game.

Upon finding out that Abby was a cheerleader, Kate almost had a heart attack. Sure, Abby was a cheery person. The happiest, cheeriest goth -person- she knew, but for Abigail Scuito to actually be a cheerleader... finding out that tidbit of information shocked Kate more than the positive pregnancy test. She didn't know what she was looking forward to more, seeing Tony in tights or seeing Abby in her cheer uniform!

Once she reached the field, Kate searched for a seat in the pretty packed bleachers. She was relatively close to the front and she had a great view. A wave of relief washed over her once she realised she was stood next to Gibbs, who seemed to be deep in conversation with Dean Shepard.

"Kate!"

Kate followed the sound of her voice being shouted to find a red and white pom pom waving frantically in the air. A smile crept onto Kate's face as she realised it was Abby who had called her. Despite being dressed in the traditional red and white cheer uniform, Abby added her own Abby touch. Her hair hung by her ears in pigtails, tied up with black ribbons with white spiders decorating them, a dog collar and the 'Abby' shade of black lipstick. Kate smiled and waved back just as enthusiastically.

Abby made her way up the bleachers, pushing random students out of her way, smiling sweetly with every 'move' and 'excuse me'. It wasn't until Abby was stood in front of her and had her pom pom clad arms around her, that Kate realised Abby had dragged somebody up with her.

"I'm so glad you could make it!" Abby beamed.

"Me too" Kate half lied, painful memories running through her mind.

"Its a good thing you chose this game in particular because I've got somebody I want you to meet!" Abby exclaimed with such a sheer amount of excitement, Kate honestly thought she was going to explode. "Caitlin Todd, this is Timothy McGee!" Abby introduced Kate to the boy she had dragged with her up the bleachers. "Timmy, this is Kate" Abby smiled as the two of them shook hands, smiling warmly at one another.

"Nice to finally meet you" McGee smiled.

"You too!" Kate smiled back. And it was. It really was. "I'm glad I get to finally put a face to the name!"

"Likewise. Abby has told me a lot about you"

"All good I hope" Kate laughed.

"Of course!" Abby smiled. "I gotta love ya and leave ya, though. Games about to start" Abby bounced cheerily, kissing both Tim and Kate on the cheek before running off and rejoining the other, more conventional cheerleaders.

"So, Abby tells me you've got a daughter" McGee smiled as he rocked back and forth on his heels.

"Yeah" Kate smiled proudly. Not that McGee was judging in any way. In fact, he looked up to Kate from everything his girlfriend had told him. "My parents have her tonight. Seems like they had the same idea as you, visiting for the weekend, that is".

"Haven't seen Abby since January. Not in person at least" McGee replied with a sad sigh.

"It must be hard" Kate half smiled sympathetically.

"It is, but its worth it" McGee smiled a genuine smile. "I just know that no matter what, we will be together. Its hard, but at the end of the day, I remember that I love her and she loves me, and with the hard times, come good -amazing- times" McGee shrugged. He knew deep down that he and Abby were meant to be, and no matter what life threw at them they would come out fighting, stronger and even more in love. It was something that Kate had only ever seen once before with her parents; love. Pure, true love. The kind of love that she only dreamed about. The kind of love that she, at this very moment, never believed she would ever find. Especially not in the form of her best friend who was currently making his way onto the pitch.

Tony, who was jogging out of the tunnel and onto the pitch was ignoring all the excited female screams and looking for one girl in particular. Kate. Ever since she had agreed to coming to his game, Tony was like a 5 year old on Christmas morning. If ever a game needed 1000%, it was this one. He didn't even realise he was out to impress Kate, but evidently, he was.

He seemed to light up once he finally found her, next to Gibbs (who was happily flirting with Dean Jennifer Shepard) and deep in conversation with 'McGoo' as Tony so aptly named him. Once McGee elbowed Kate and nodded towards Tony, Kate smiled and waved. Tony, completely forgetting he was surrounded by his team-mates, returned the actions enthusiastically. He had a good feeling about this game tonight.

Once the game was over, Ohio State winning thanks to Tony's 3 touchdowns in a row, Abby, McGee, Tony and Kate, who had to be talked into it, headed out to their favourite post-game diner. Kate had been reluctant to go at first, missing her daughter and also feeling guilty that her parents had come all this way to see her and she wasn't spending all the time she could with them, but Tony and Abby managed to talk her into it, and after phoning her parents, they agreed too.

Much to Tony's disgust, Abby and McGee sat either side of one another on the opposite side of the booth from him and Kate making out hungrily behind the menu.

"Y'know, I've kinda lost my appetite" Tony gagged over dramatically, receiving a black polished middle finger from Abby.

"I didn't think it was even possible!" Kate scoffed, being as over dramatic in her shockedness as Tony was a few seconds before.

"Are you ready to order?" A tall, spotty, lanky waiter asked, interrupting the foursome.

"Yup. We'll have four burgers, four plates of fries, two diet cokes, a sprite and a caf-pow please" Tony smiled to the waiter as he wrote down their orders in his Star Wars notepad.

"I thought you lost your appetite" Kate narrowed her eyes at Tony.

"That was until I realised Napolean Dynamite was our waiter..."

"...Tony!" Kate scolded at the nickname as Tony was mid-sentence.

"...I saved him from getting a serious ass kicking one night back in high school so he always gives me extra fries" Tony shrugged.

"Well, like I said, the world will end before you ever lose your appetite!" Kate poked Tony in his toned, hard chest.

"Hey! I lost my appetite this morning!" Tony said with a laugh, although, at the time, it certainly was no laughing matter.

"Oh right, yeah... I almost forgot about that!" Kate sighed.

"I tell ya, Kate. Opening the door to your parents in nothing but my underwear and your dressing gown, it genuinely scarred me for life!"

Ever since Kate had accidentally dropped Tony's name so casually in their last phone conversation, Kate's parents had not left her alone. They had been constantly calling and texting her, wanting to know where she was and who she was with, and most importantly, was she sleeping with Tony. Kate had brushed them off on Wednesday, declining their calls, ignoring their texts, telling them she needed space... So the only logical thing her parents could think of was a surprise visit for the weekend.

_"Oooooowwwww! Crap!" Tony exclaimed as he spilt boiling hot coffee all down himself, soaking through his black t-shirt and dark wash jeans and burning his skin. _

_Tony pulled off his t-shirt and unbuttoned his pants as quickly as he could, revealing red patches down his stomach and thigh. After inspecting his skin and realising he did not have third degree burns, Tony headed for Kate's bathroom and wiped himself down with a cool cloth. He knew he needed to change, but he found himself somewhat stuck. He had no clothes at Kate's and needed to go back to his dorm to change. Normally, that wouldn't be an issue, he would just pick Grace up and take her with him, but today, she was sleeping. Kate had told him that she barely slept through the night, so he couldn't just wake her up... But he also couldn't just leave her alone, even if he lived next door and would be gone all of five minutes. He may have reconsidered doing that a month or so ago, but not now Grace was crawling. _

_So, he figured he would just wait until Grace woke up and grabbed Kate's pink fluffy dressing gown and wrapped it around his almost naked body. Tony subconsciously smiled as he inhaled and the smell of Kate filled his nostrils. He padded back into the living room, not really paying attention due to the fact he felt like he was wearing a pink, Kate smelling cloud around his body, and walked right into Kate's coffee table. _

_"FUCK!" Tony screamed, jumping up and down on his left leg, his right one bent as his big toe throbbed in agony. _

_The sound of Tony crashing into the table and screaming in pain tore Grace from her slumber, and she awoke with an awful scream. Just as Tony was about to hobble off to see to Grace, there was a knock at the door. He stopped mid-step for a moment, wondering who he should attend to first but then carried on into Kate's bedroom. _

_"I'm so sorry, Chubbs" Tony cooed as he picked the crying baby up, bouncing her gently up and down in his arms. "Ssshhhh" Tony smiled down at her, her cries subsiding as he rocked her gently on his way to open the door. _

_"I'm sorry about that!" Tony laughed slightly as he opened the door to the slightly familiar couple. _

_"I'm sorry" the old man narrowed his eyes in confusion. "We were looking for Caitlin Todd's dorm-" _

_"-oh yeah. You came to the right place" Tony smiled as Grace chewed on the sleeve of the dressing gown. "I'm Tony, and you are?" _

_"Caitlin's parents!" The woman, who Tony now assumed was Kate's mother, snapped, pushing Tony aside as they stepped into the dorm. _

"My mother still thinks we're doing it" Kate laughed.

"Seriously, when your father saw me half naked in your dressing I swear I saw a murderous glimmer in his eye. I think he would have tackled me to the ground had I not been holding his granddaughter!"

Before anyone could say anything else, the waiter brought over everybody's drinks and meals. While they were eating, they chatted happily amongst themselves about their lives. Tony finished his burger and fries within 5 minutes and then went on to eat the half a plate of fries Kate left and the ones he managed to sneak off of Abby and McGee's plates, and was still hungry.

It was nearing 11 and Kate was starting to look tired, and as much as she had enjoyed tonight, Tony could tell her heart wasn't 100% into is because she was missing Grace.

"We better call it a night" Abby said, fake yawning and pulling McGee up from the booth, sleep the last thing on her minf tonight.

"Me too" Kate smiled.

"You okay getting home?" Tony asked, Abby and McGee already half way out of the diner (without saying goodbye), not really knowing how Kate had gotten there tonight.

"I'm fine" Kate smiled, leaving a tip on the table. "Its not too dark"

"Whoa!" Tony stood in front of Kate, stopping her from going anywhere. "You are NOT walking home if that's what you mean! I'm parked right around the corner, c'mon" Tony grabbed Kate by the hand and led her to his car.

"Thank you" Kate smiled genuinely once she was in Tony's car. "For tonight".

"You live next door, its nothing" Tony shrugged it off as he turned the key in his ignition.

"No, not just the lift. Everything. The game, the diner, everything. I had fun, a lot of fun"

"Well, good. I'm glad. Its nice seeing you relax" Tony smiled and glanced at her as he pulled out of the parking lot. "Let's just hope I get you home before 12am so your mom and dad don't beat the crap out of me"

"Don't worry, they'd have to go through me first" Kate smiled cheekily.

"I thought you said he was just your next door neighbour" Martha Todd said from behind her coffee cup.

"He_ is_" Kate sighed frustratedly.

"He seems a little more than that, Caitlin" her mother scoffed, implying the worst.

"He's my friend, my best friend. I thought you wanted me to go off to college and make a new life for myself!" Kate snapped. She loved her parents, she really did, but they had been driving her insane all week and she felt like she was going to snap. And besides, it really was none of their business.

"I just didn't think that new life would involve half naked men" her mother quipped back, taking a sip from her coffee. "Y'know, I still don't know how I feel about _him_ looking after Grace-"

"-well its a good thing you don't get a say in the matter then!" Kate replied, crossing her arms across her chest.

"Ladies" her father sighed, not wanting a fight to break loose between his wife and daughter.

"I'm just saying that instead of some random strange man looking after Grace everyday, she could just come back and live with us-"

"-that's it!" Kate shouted, standing up from the table, her chair sliding back and screeching across the kitchen tiles. "I love you, mom, I really do but I've had it up to here..." Kate motioned to the top of her head with her hand, "...with you. From the day I told you I was pregnant you have done nothing but undermine me and tell me you know best, and I know you think you're doing it out of love, but what you say actually hurts me! You make out that I am incapable of looking after myself, let alone be a suitable mother to my daughter. I know I'm not the best, but I try and I've done pretty well so far by myself! And Tony isn't some 'random strange man' either! You would know that if you hadn't just brushed him off! Grace is MY daughter, you hear that? Mine, not yours. No matter what you think, she is better off with me and she is not living back in Indiana with you! I love you but you're making it so hard... I just- I need you to leave, okay? I'm sorry" tears rolled down Kate's cheeks as she picked her daughter up from her highchair and ran into her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

"I told you to leave it, Martha. Now look what you've done!" Richard Todd sighed, getting up from his breakfast and following Kate.

"Katie?" He asked knocking on her bedroom door before letting himself in.

His granddaughter was happily sat in her cot, chewing on her spoon whilst his daughter was curled up in bed, her body shaking as she cried.

"I'm sorry, Katie" Richard sighed, sitting on the edge of Kate's bed. "She means well, you know her"

"I know she does, Daddy... Its just, she doesn't think. I know it was a shock when you found out I was pregnant, and I know just how much you both sacrificed for me and how hard you both try. Believe me, I do, and I am so grateful for it, every day... But she of all people should know, I'm a mother too now. The things she says, they hurt" Kate was now sat up and facing her father, tears of both anger and pain rushing down her face.

"I'm sorry, sweetie" her father sighed, wrapping his arm around his baby daughter and pulling her into a tight, loving embrace.

It was no secret that Kate was his favourite. She always had been and always would be. She was a daddy's girl through and through, and from the minute she was born, Kate and her father had had a special connection. Their relationship had been strained the past year but it had also made them stronger. It broke Richard Todd's heart to see his youngest child, his baby, so sad and broken.

"You were our little baby and you just grew up so fast. No matter what, your mother and I are always going to see you as our baby" Richard placed a sweet kiss on his daughters temple whilst rubbing her back soothingly.

"I know that, Daddy" Kate sniffled. Right now she resembled the five year old daughter he had once consoled when Joe ad flushed her pet goldfish down the toilet and told Kate it had run away to start a new life in Australia without her.

"She's so proud of you, Katie. She really is. We all are"

"Yeah well, she's got a funny way of showing it!"

"You know your mother, she's a complicated lady but she loves you and is incredibly proud of you. She just has a funny way of showing it"

"I guess" Kate shrugged, wiping her eyes. Her father was right. Despite her harsh words, her mother had _always _been there for Kate. But that still didn't excuse her constantly belittling Kate.

"See, all you kids forget that she's your mother sometimes. All five of you. You're all grown up now and you've all left home and with me away a lot, that just leaves her all alone in that big house"

That made Kate feel slightly guilty. She never thought about it that way. Especially now she was a mother herself, it broke her heart to think about Grace growing up and leaving her in 18 years... She would have to speak to her mother more often.

"I didn't think about that" Kate sighed, chewing on her lip.

"Katie?" She heard her mothers voice from the other side of the door. "I'm sorry. Can I speak to you for a minute please?"

Kate looked to her father who just looked at her with an encouraging smile.

"Okay" Kate replied as her father kissed her forehead, before picking his Granddaughter up and swapping places with his wife.

"Look, Caitlin. I'm sorry" her mother looked down at her lap.

"I know" Kate swallowed hard. "Its just... You don't think about what you're saying. I'm trying my hardest to give Grace a good life and sometimes you make me feel like I'm not good enough"

"You know I would never intentionally make you feel that way, Katie. I think you're an amazing mother. I'm only trying to help"

"I know that too, its just, you need to think before you speak, mom." There was a few moments of awkward silence as Martha took her daughters hand in her own.

"Sometimes I forget that you're not my baby girl anymore, that you're 18 and don't need me anymore" Martha said with a sad laugh. "It was hard when the others went off to college, but you were my youngest, my baby. I guess I was in denial that you too would grow up. You were always independent though, even as a child. And such a daddy's girl! But I get it now, Katie. You're not a baby anymore-"

"-I'll _always_ be your baby and I'll _always_ need my mom. That will never change. I just need you to trust in me too". A tear rolled down Kate's cheek as her mother pulled her into a tight, loving embrace. The kind that only mothers could give.

"So" Kate broke the silence after a few minutes, still in the warm, loving arms of her mother. "I usually take Grace to the park on a Saturday and then go to this little cafe afterwards, you guys fancy coming too?"

_**Not really too sure about this chapter but I hope you like it. Please lemme know what you think :) **_  
_**-hopefully the next chapter will be in in a few days!**_


	9. Chapter 9

It was almost 12am on a Tuesday night, and Tony was beyond worried. Kate was almost two hours late and he hadn't heard a word from her. Due to the fact the school year was nearing to an end in a few months, Kate was spending most nights in the library studying, staying until it closed at 10pm.

He had put Grace to bed at 7pm and had been phoning Kate non-stop for the past hour and a half, only getting her voicemail.

"Kate, seriously. I'm worried now. Please just let me know you're okay!" Tony sighed, leaving his 5th voicemail.

His mind was racing a million miles per hour as he paced up and down Kate's living room floor. He was freaking out. This was so out of character for her and he knew something was wrong. As he pinched the bridge of his nose, his phone began to ring and before the third ring rung out Tony answered.

"Kate?" Tony asked, not looking at his caller ID. "...Abby?" His heart sunk when he heard Abby on the other end of the line.

"Tony... I just got a call from the hospital. Its Kate"

Tony froze. He couldn't even breathe, let alone think clearly or form coherent sentences.

"Wha-"

"She's fine" Abby spoke again, sounding just as shaken up as Tony. "Apparently she got attacked as she was walking to her car. She put up a fight though. She's just got a broken arm and is a bit shaken up. They're gonna keep her in overnight just to be on the safe side. I was the first person in her phone so they called me and asked if I'd come down so I thought I'd better let you know"

"Im-im coming with you, Abbs. Just lemme get Chris to watch Grace and I'll pick you up , okay? I-i don't want you to go alone".

"Okay. See you soon" Abby replied before they hung up the phone.

Chris had been reluctant to watch Grace at first but when he saw Tony's eyes pleading with his he took a still sleeping Grace from Tony's shaky arms before Tony bolted to his car. The drive to the hospital was silent. Both Tony and Abby were scared out of their minds. Tony was driving a little more recklessly than usual, driving above the speed limit and running a red light or two, but Abby didn't complain. She just wanted to get to her best friend as quickly as possible.

When they finally got to the hospital, Tony ran straight to the front desk, shouting at the tiny woman behind it and asking where Kate was and if she was okay.

"Tony!" Abby shouted, giving the woman behind the desk a look and apologising. "This way" Abby signalled to the doctor showing Abby the way.

"She's lucky" the doctor smiled softly at the pair, knowing just how scared they must be. "She's fine, a broken arm and a few broken ribs" the beautiful, latina woman in deep blue scrubs turned a corner sharply. "She's on some pretty strong pain meds so she's pretty out of it. But she's been asking for you two for the past twenty minutes" the doctor laughed.

"If she's fine why are you keeping her in over night?" Tony asked, a little less panicked than before knowing she was awake but still pretty shook up.

"We just want to make sure she's okay and she doesn't have any major injuries or a concussion. Plus, due to the meds she's on, we want to make sure she doesn't have an allergic reaction" she smiled again, pointing to a room.

"Thank you" both Tony and Abby smiled gratefully at the woman.

"Any time" she smiled back. "If you need anything or have any questions, just ask them to page Dr Torres. I will be back throughout the night to check on her"

As Abby and Tony entered the room, they found Kate sitting up in bed, looking slightly pale with a busted lip and a giant black, blue and purple angry looking bruise stretching from her left cheek bone and enveloping her left eye. Her left arm was covered in a white cast and across her chest in a sling. In her right hand she was holding the TV remote and staring into it as though it were a crystal ball.

"Tooooooony! Abbbbyyyyy!" Kate exclaimed when she laid eyes on her best friends.

"Looks like somebody got the good drugs!" Tony cracked, smiling.

"Where's my baby?" Kate asked, smiling like a moron.

"She's with Chris" Tony replied, sitting on the edge of Kate's bed as Abby took the seat.

"The same Chris who tried to feed her pizza and spicy wedges?"

"The same. But she's sleeping so she'll be okay"

"...Abby!" Kate tried to whisper but it came out more like a shout. "Why is Tony riding a unicorn?"

Abby looked at Kate as though she were crazy as she tried to stifle back a laugh. Kate really was 'out of it'.

"And why do I have an Iron Man arm?" Kate looked down at her cast-clad arm.

"Because your arm is broken" Abby replied.

"Well why don't you buy me a new one?" Kate asked like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

"Because yours can heal in that cast" Tony replied.

As funny as Kate was right now, it broke both Abby and Tony's hearts seeing her like this. Both with her physical injuries and the fact she must be in so much pain that she was on drugs that made her loopy.

"Hey, Tony?" Kate asked in a dreamy tone with a lovesick smile. "Where's your tights? I love your butt in your tights"

"My what?" Tony asked. She really was high!

"I think she means the ones you wear for football" Abby whispered to Tony.

"Oh... They're at home. I only wear them when I have a game or when I'm training"

Kate stopped listening to Tony mid-sentence and started staring off into the space just beside Tony's head.

"Kate?" Tony asked, wondering what she was doing. "Kate, you okay?"

"Ssshhhhh!" Kate snapped, not taking her eyes from the spot next to Tony. "Your unicorn is giving me the stink eye".

Tony looked at the empty space beside his head. Did she seriously see a unicorn?!

"I don't like it, Tony, tell it to go away!"

"Huh?"

"Tell your unicorn to go away! I don't like it!" Kate replied.

Tony seemed lost and looked to Abby for guidance.

"Just humour her" Abby said with a shrug as Kate tugged on one of her pigtails, twirling Abby's silky black locks between her fingers.

"Er... Bad unicorn!" Tony turned and pointed towards the empty space where Kate had been looking.

"Tony, why are you shouting at the leprechaun? I like him. He's cute. He looks like Gibbs in a green suit" Kate looked at Tony as though he were the stupidest person alive.

"The leprechaun?" Tony repeated under his breath. "Sorry. Where's the unicorn now then?" He asked, smiling slightly when he realised Abby was filming this. Kate would kill her, but this was an opportunity that couldn't be passed up.

"He's eating the sugar cubes in your pocket" Kate used her good arm to point to Tony's jacket.

"Bad unicorn! Naughty!" Tony started to really get into it. "You leave Kate-"

"-Princess Kate" Kate cleared her throat, pointing to what must have been an imaginary tiara on her head.

"_Princess_ Kate" Tony corrected. "You be nice to her, or... or no more sugar cubes for you!"

Abby let out a squeak as she tried to stifle her laughter, Kate seemed satisfied and smiled.

"Thank you"

"Always" Tony smiled. He would do anything for Kate, no matter what.

Abby left a little after 3am, but Tony refused to leave Kate's bedside. Kate had started to get sleepy an hour before Abby left, but was fighting the urge to sleep.

"Hey, Tony" Kate said in a sleepy voice.

"Yeah, Kate? You okay?" Tony replied in an equally sleepy voice. He had moved to the chair by Kate's bedside once Abby had left.

"Will you come snuggle me?"

Tony's heart skipped a beat. Did he want to snuggle her? Of course he did! He wished he could just hold her in his arms forever and keep her safe and warm. But the thought of _actually_ snuggling Kate terrified him and not just because he didn't want to hurt her even more.

"Oh, I don't wanna hurt you" Tony half lied.

"You won't! Pleaseeeeee?" Kate looked up at Tony with giant chocolate puppy dog eyes and sticking her bottom lip out.

Tony couldn't deny Kate anything on a normal day, let alone when she was all beaten, bruised and broken and she really needed him.

"Okay" Tony half smiled.

"Yaaaay!" Kate exclaimed, shuffling over in her bed to make room for Tony.

Tony kicked off his trainers before getting into the bed with Kate. He wrapped his arm around her shoulder and she shuffled closer to him, her broken arm resting across his toned abdomen and her head resting on the curve of his shoulder.

"You okay?" Tony asked. "I'm not hurting you?"

"No. Its like cuddling a cloud" Kate sighed sleepily, inhaling his scent. "A big, sexy cloud" she added as she wrapped her leg around one of his own, pulling herself even closer to him.

"Night Tony" Kate smiled, kissing his t-shirt and inhaling his scent.

"Night Kate" Tony replied, his fingers dancing in Kate's soft brown hair. It was slightly damp in places so he assumed they must have washed blood from it. The stray piece of dried blood at the back of her head confirmed his theory. "Sleep well" he added to an already snoring Kate, kissing her forehead gingerly.

Despite having three broken ribs and a broken arm, Kate had never been more comfortable. Snuggling with Tony was way better than any pain killers they could offer her. Tony had to agree, although he didn't get much sleep because he spent all the night worrying about Kate and how she would feel, both physically and emotionally, in the morning.

_**YES I AM EVIL I KNOW, but Kate is okay... for now. Thank you so much for all your support and reviews! They honestly mean so much to me and motivate me to get the chapters up quicker, so please keep them coming;-)**_

_**Also, make sure you didn't miss the previous chapter as I posted that yesterday. **_


	10. Chapter 10

Kate woke up in the early hours of the next morning, not by a screaming child, but by a searing pain coursing through her body. Her head was throbbing, her chest felt like a tanker truck had fallen on it and crushed it and her arm felt like it had been crushed and pulverised.

She shot up in bed, not realising where she was or what was happening. Her monitor began to beep frantically as Kate began to panic. She brought her good arm to her chest as she began to hyper-ventilate.

Tony woke up a few seconds after Kate did, and once he realised what was happening, that Kate's pain meds had worn off and she was now awake and in an incredible amount of pain, he knew he had to calm her down.

"Kate" Tony sat up, getting Kate's attention. "Kate it's okay, I know it hurts. Just breathe, okay?" Tony looked into Kate's eyes, a deep dark pool of pain, confusion and panic. Tony's finger had pressed the call button almost 10 times in the space of a few seconds. The monitors continued to beep frantically as Kate was in a state of panic.

"T-tony?" Kate swallowed hard, her breathing fast and wavering, tears streaming down her cheeks as the memory of last night came flooding back to her and the pain grew more and more with each passing second.

"It's okay, Kate" Dr Torres spoke soothingly as she ran into Kate's room. "This should help" she smiled reassuringly as she injected what must have been pain medication into Kate's arm.

It seemed to work almost instantly as Kate's face seemed to soften slightly. It wasn't the same medicine as last night, but it was still pretty strong and made Kate drowsy. The sun still hadn't risen yet and Dr Torres told Kate to go back to sleep and she would be back in an hour or so to check on her.

Within five minutes, Kate had fallen back to sleep. She looked like Grace when she slept. So sweet and innocent. So vulnerable. Tony swallowed hard, just standing next to Kate's bed, staring at her sleeping form. He felt so helpless. So useless. The situation was starting to get real now. It wasn't going to be something Kate would just laugh off. She wasn't going to see unicorns and Gibbs-like leprechauns, she was most probably going to replay that night over and over in her head. She would probably push everyone away and become even more introverted. There was no way in hell Tony would ever let that happen. She could push as hard as she wanted but he would just push her back ten times as hard. He was going to be there for her, every step of the way. No matter how dark and how hard it was.

With one last look at Kate, Tony took a deep breath and left the room. He couldn't be there any longer, he had to get out of that room for a bit. Down the corridor, there was a waiting area with a coffee machine and several vending machines. It was empty, due to the fact it was only almost 6 in the morning. Walking over to the coffee machine, Tony thought about Kate's parents. He wanted to phone them, they should know. If he was a parent he would want to know. But then he thought about how he would tell them, that he would have to be the one to break the news that Kate had been attacked, that she was fine, but she was in hospital... He couldn't even think about that himself. He didn't even know if Kate would want her parents to know. To make them worry about her even more every second of every day. He decided he would wait until Kate was awake and ask her first. After all, she would have enough to deal with without her parents on top of it all too.

He took his coffee and sat down on one of the sea green seats, his head hanging in his hands. His eyes stung from lack of sleep and his head was pounding. The awful hospital lights just made things seem 100 times worse. He sighed as he rubbed his face with his hands. He just wanted to scream and punch something right now... Or to wake up and find out this was all some sick and twisted nightmare. If he ever found out who had done this, who had caused this much pain, he would tear them limb from limb. How could anyone want to hurt Kate? She was so small and sweet and innocent, an easy target he supposed. A slight smile made it way onto Tony's lips. She may look like an easy target, but Kate was strong and according to the doctors she had fought back. Put up one hell of a fight. She was a fighter through and through.

Before another thought could invade Tony's mind, his phone started to vibrate against his leg. He pulled it out of his pocket, knowing what to expect as soon as he saw the caller ID. Chris.

"Yeah?" Tony answered, standing up and heading out of the hospital.

"Dude... It won't stop crying... And it smells" Chris spoke down the phone, looking at the screaming baby in the makeshift pillow fort he had made. "What do I do?"

"I'm on my way, just get a bottle of milk out of the bag"

"And what, just give it to her?"

"Well, warm it up first. Make sure its warm and not too hot and then give it to her. You just need to hold the end up but she does the rest herself"

"And that stops the crying?"

"For a bit"

"And what do I do about the smell, we're all out of Febreeze"

Tony rolled his eyes. Chris was honestly the worst baby sitter. He was the middle child of six and he had four nieces and nephews... And yet he was still oblivious on how to care for a child. It was quite funny really, but Tony wasn't in the mood for laughing.

"I'll sort that out. I should be there soon"

Once Tony arrived home, his dorm looked like a tornado had hit. He found Chris standing in the middle of the room, holding a screaming Grace with outstretched arms, making funny faces and begging her to stop crying. Tony took Grace from his friend and thanked him before he headed to Kate's dorm and sorted Grace out. Once she was fed, bathed and changed, Tony plonked her down in front of the TV while he packed a bag for Kate, figuring she would like a change of clothes to come home in. He threw a navy and white striped baggy t-shirt and some navy sweat pants into a bag as well as some of Kate's toiletries and a bunch of stuff for Grace before he headed back to the hospital.

As Tony got back to the hospital, he saw Kate's doctor, Dr Torres, walking down the corridor in his direction, an annoyed and tired look on her face.

"Oh, Tony!" She called out and jogged towards him.

"Is everything okay?" He asked, worrying as Grace reached across to Dr Torres' hair.

"It will be now. The police are here and want to take Kate's statement but she's refusing to do anything until she see's her baby"

Dr Torres opened Kate's door for Tony as his hands were full with a duffle bag and an extremely squirmy baby.

"Gracie!" Kate exclaimed, her face lighting up as she saw her child. "Oh baby I missed you!" She smiled as Tony gently placed the child in her mothers arm, showering the baby in kisses.

"How are you feeling?" Tony asked.

"Better now" Kate smiled, blowing raspberries on her daughters chubby cheek, the sound of Grace's laughter helping to ease her pain. "The doctors said you stayed with me all night" Kate looked back at Tony, who looked as though he had aged 10 years in the past 10 hours.

"I would never leave you, Kate" he shrugged it off as though it was nothing.

"Thank you, Tony" Kate smiled genuinely at him, wincing in pain as her cheek began to burn.

Grace was sat in her mothers lap, eyeing the giant white cast covering her arm questioningly. Her tiny little fingers danced on the cast before she decided it would be a fun thing to chew on. Kate laughed slightly as Tony pulled Grace away, knowing it was near impossible for Kate to do in her condition.

"How was she?" Kate asked, her fingers lost in her daughters soft curls.

"She slept through the night but then Chris freaked when she woke up but she was fine once she was fed and changed"

"I'll have to thank him too when I get home"

"Are you ready to give your statement now, Ms Todd?" A female police officer stood in the doorway.

Kate nodded.

As Tony stood up to leave, Kate grabbed his arm. Tony looked to the police woman who just shrugged and told Tony he could stay as long as he was quiet. Tony laced his fingers with Kate's and squeezed her hand. It was a small gesture, but for Kate and Tony, it spoke volumes.

Kate began to tell her version of events, not that she remembered much of it. She seemed to know even less than the police did. Tony couldn't figure out if it was a blessing or a curse, and figured it was both. All Kate could remember was she was attacked by a young-ish man as she walked to her car. She didn't see his face as it was both dark and he had a black sweatshirt on with the hood up. He tried to take her car keys and Kate got in a few good swings before he punched her back and ultimately knocked her clean out.

After she had given her statement and the police officer had left the doctors prepared her to be discharged. A nurse helped her get cleaned up, changed her bloody bandages and get dressed as Dr Torres went over her medication and recovery with Tony. Grace was happily playing with Dr Torres' stethoscope, completely mesmerised by the shiny end.

Kate reluctantly was wheeled out of the hospital in a wheelchair and helped into Tony's car by two nurses and Dr Torres as Tony fixed Grace into her car seat. Once they were home, Tony placed Grace in her playpen and helped Kate to get comfortable on her sofa. It was nearing 3pm and Kate's pain meds were wearing off again. Tony rooted around in the dufflebag for her medication and poured Kate a glass of water.

"Open wide!" Tony smiled, handing Kate the glass of cool water and two rather large red and white capsules.

Kate threw them down her throat with her good hand before washing them down with her water.

"Thank you" Kate smiled as she leaned to put her glass on the coffee table, wincing in pain as her ribs began sending shooting pains through her body. Tony took the glass from Kate mid-air and placed it on the coaster.

Kate wanted to scream. Not only because she was in pain but because she was basically an invalid. She couldn't even take her medication without help.

"I'm just gonna change Grace's diaper" Tony looked over his shoulder at Kate, picking a stinky Grace up out of her brightly coloured playpen. "You gonna be okay?"

"I'll be fine" Kate sighed, trying, and failing, to mask the annoyance in her voice.

As Tony went into the bedroom to change the baby, Kate began to feel drowsy, and quite frankly high, once again. A few minutes later, Tony re-emerged with a freshly changed Grace, placing her back to her building block tower in her playpen before going to check on Kate.

"Hey you" Tony smiled, taking a seat on the sofa next to Kate. "How you feeling?"

"Good" Kate smiled a goofy smile, similar to the one she had smiled the night before.

"Wow, they work quick" Tony laughed to himself. "You're not in any pain?"

"Nope"

"Good. You let me know when you are though, okay"

"Why?"

"So I can give you your pills"

"No... _why?" _Kate widened her eyes as she emphasised the word 'why'.

"Why what?" Tony asked, not really following her.

"Why are you doing all this for me? You don't have to, you know"

"I know" Tony half smiled. "I want to. And besides, as much as you might think it, you can't do this alone. And I'm not gonna let you try either"

"Its not your fault you know. That I got attacked"

"Kate-"

"-no, Tony. I know you're beating yourself up about it. I just need you to stop. I'm fine"

"You're not _'fine', _Kate" Tony looked at Kate seriously. She was high as a kite right now and was obviously speaking her mind. Either that or the drugs made her delusional like they did last night.

"Tony?" Kate looked up at Tony through her long, curled eyelashes and black eye.

"Yeah?"

"You're gonna protect me, right?"

"Of course I am!" Tony swallowed hard. He wasn't going to let anything else happen to her.

"You're not gonna let him come and get me again?"

"No"

"Not even if he comes into my room and rapes me again?" Kate yawned.

"What?!" Tony's heart dropped. Was what happened last night even worse than they thought? Had that man not only beaten Kate, but raped her too? "Kate, did-did you, last night, the man, did he... Did he... Force himself on you?" Tony fumbled on his words, not being able to say them out loud.

"No. Not him. Rob, my brother Joe's room mate"

"Kate" Tony looked at Kate, pleading with her to stop talking. Hoping that her drugged psyche would stop. It wouldn't.

"That's Gracie's dad" Kate sighed, looking over in the direction of her baby. "He came into my room one night over Christmas break and got into bed with me"

"Kate, please" Tony begged, not wanting to hear. Not because he didn't want to listen, he did, but he didn't want Kate to tell him something she would regret in a few hours. If she didn't want to tell him, or anyone for that matter, this when she was sober, then there was a reason for that. And as much as Tony wanted to get up and walk away from Kate right now, he couldn't. There was a look in Kate's eye, a look that was normal Kate. That begged him to stay. That said she needed to get it out. That she trusted him to know this. To know what three people in the whole world knew.

He had always wondered about Grace's dad, but out of respect, he never asked. He always knew that if Kate wanted him to know, she would tell him. They told each other pretty much everything. He had expected it to be the typical story; some guy told her he loved her to get her into bed and just left her once she was pregnant. But this? He never expected this. His heart broke and he had a surge of anger towards this Rob person. He couldn't remember a time when he had been this angry.

"I guess it was my fault though. He had been flirting with me all night and I'd flirted back" Kate shrugged.

"Kate, what happened... That's _not_ your fault! You hear me?!" Tony looked at her square in the eye, his tone completely serious. "You were 16 years old and no amount of flirting means a man can just come and do that to you!"

"Hmn, sure" Kate yawned, her eyelids getting heavier and heavier in her head.

"No Kate, I need you to understand me! Just like you told me not to blame myself for what happened last night, you can't blame yourself for that night! Please Kate!"

"Hmphf" Kate grunted sleepily, giving in to the sweet bliss of sleep.

Tony pulled a blanket over her before he began to pace up and down. His mind was everywhere. Kate had just dropped an atomic bomb on him... something which she was sure she would regret in a couple of hours. He couldn't lie to her, not now he knew that and that Kate blamed herself... He had to tell her he knew. But she would be so angry and upset. That she had spewed her biggest, darkest secret. She would probably tell Tony to get out and never speak to him again. Plus he couldn't face looking at her, he knew he would look at her with pure heartbreak... And that would make her mad. She told him she hated the way people looked at her when they found out she had a kid. With pity. A look that showed they felt sorry for her. He prayed that maybe she would do something completely out of character and be glad she had finally told somebody. Had finally told him. But he knew that was near impossible. Kate was a private person, the most private person he had ever met. Even when she opened up to him, she still kept a guard up and never let him fully in. And now he knew why.

He looked down at her sleeping form. She was no different, was she? She was still the same Kate she was before he knew. Or was she completely different? No, she was the same Kate. Just slightly more bruised and broken. His eyes flitted over to Grace who was mumuring happily to herself. He was glad she was too young to understand or remember any of this. An overwhelming sense of pride washed over Tony. He had always been proud of Kate... But now he knew this he was prouder than he ever thought humanly possible.

For Kate to have gone through something as traumatic as that and then come out the amazing person she was now, that was something to be proud of. But still, his mind was racing and he felt like he was drowning in his thoughts. He needed to take his mind off it so he figured he would start dinner, not that he had much of an appetite but he knew Kate would probably be hungry when she woke up. Even if she wasn't she had to eat.

He felt something wet drip onto his cheek and immediately looked up at the ceiling. It was only when he saw that there was no leak that he realised he was the one leaking. It was his own tear. He quickly wiped it away and blinked a few times before heading into the kitchen to prepare the dinner.

It was a little after 5pm when Kate woke up, the smell of food invading her senses and waking her from her dreams. Kate plodded through into the kitchen to find Tony feeding Grace whilst holding up her cell phone with his shoulder.

"Ah, here she is!" Tony smiled as Kate narrowed her eyes. "Its your sister" Tony handed the phone to Kate as she sat in the seat next to Grace's highchair.

Tony continued to feed the baby as Kate braced herself for what she knew would be a lecture from her sister.

"Katie?" Her sister asked desperately down the phone.

"Hey Rach" Kate smiled slightly.

"How are you?"

"I'm good-"

"-cut the crap, Katie. Abby phoned me this morning!"

Oh she was going to kill Abby when she saw her!

"She did?" Kate sighed.

"Don't worry, mom and dad don't know" Rachael reassured her little sister, knowing what she was thinking before she said it. "But you can't keep it from them, Kate. They have to know"

"I know" Kate huffed. "I'll tell them, I will, just not right now".

"Okay... But if you don't tell them, I will!"

"I will!"

"Good. Okay. How are you anyway, little sis?" Rachael asked, not wanting to get into an argument with Kate.

"A little sore but they've got me on some pretty strong pain meds"

"And how are you... Emotionally?"

Kate hated it whenever Rachael asked her that. She was dreading the day Rachael actually became a fully fledged, fully licenced therapist!

"I haven't really had a chance to think about it. The pain meds make me drowsy and I just sleep. Look, I gotta go" Kate lied, not wanting to speak to her sister about this anymore. "I'll speak to you soon. I love you"

"Love you too"

And with that, Kate hung up and put her phone back on the kitchen table. Her eyes landed on Tony, who was currently pretending the spoon full of mashed peas was an aeroplane. He looked funny, different. Maybe he was just tired and worried, he had been up most of the night and then looking after her and the baby all day. Still, she couldn't help feel like this was her fault and it worried her to see Tony like that.

"Look, whatever Rachael said about me was a lie!... Unless she said really nice things, then they were all true!" Kate laughed slightly, trying to lighten the mood. The room was so awkward and tense right now that you could literally cut the tension with a knife. "Tony?" Kate asked seriously, noticing he hadn't payed any attention to her last comment.

"Yeah, Kate?" Tony replied, looking away from the chubby baby who was giggling in delight.

"Are you okay?"

"Me? I'm fine" Tony brushed it off. But Kate knew him better than that and saw straight through his lie.

"Tony" she sighed, looking at him from across the table. "I know you, and I know there's something wrong. Please, just tell me"

"Honestly Kate, its nothing-"

"-please?" Kate pushed.

"Fine" Tony sighed deeply, running a hand over his face. "We need to talk".

_**I AM SO EVIL I KNOW. Please let me know what you think! Is it a good thing or a bad thing Tony knows Kate's deepest, darkest secret? How do you think Kate will react? **_

_**Also, I figured I owed you a longish chapter seeing as how the last one was so short. I hope you liked it.**_


	11. Chapter 11

The past couple of hours had been torture. Literally. They had been the longest of Tony's life. The internal battle within him had only been solved once Kate had woken up, noticed he wasn't himself and begged him to tell her what was wrong.

He had to tell her. This wasn't something he could keep from her. It wasn't fair to either of them. And besides, he would never lie to Kate. He couldn't. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to compose himself and give him the courage he needed to relay to Kate what she had told him not 2 hours ago.

Kate felt like her whole world had fallen apart. She felt naked, violated almost. Just like she had that night. How could she have been so stupid. She felt sick as she listened to Tony. He knew. He knew she had been raped. He knew the thing she had planned on taking to her grave. She wanted to cry and scream and run. Run away from her apartment. Run away from Tony, away from the situation. She hadn't looked up from her lap in what seemed like forever. She couldn't. She didn't think she would ever be able to look Tony in the eye again. She didn't think she'd be able to even be around Tony anymore. Surely he must think so little of her now, right?

"Kate, look at me. Please" Tony hooked his finger under Kate's chin and tilted her head up. Kate kept her eyes anywhere but his face. "Kate, please" Tony swallowed hard.

It took Kate a moment, probably debating on whether she should, Tony thought, before she finally flitted her eyes to his. Hers were a mix of emotions; shame, anger, sadness. But his, his were not showing the emotions she expected to see. She did not see pity or disgust in his eyes. She saw pride. The same eyes he always looked at her with only softer and more fearful.

"I know this is hard... Me knowing" Tony spoke again, his thumbs wiping away a stray tear on Kate's cheek. "But I don't want to lose you Kate. I-i can't"

Kate's heart felt heavy in her chest. He would never lose her. Not now she saw that he didn't pity her, that he didn't feel sorry for her. She suddenly felt like the weight on her shoulders had gotten lighter. She felt better. She was somewhat glad that somebody knew, especially glad that somebody was Tony. Her best friend, the one person that knew her better than she knew herself. The only person in the world that by knowing all this, didn't judge her for it. The person that still saw her as Kate. Not some poor weak little rape victim and single teenage mother. This realisation seemed to have washed away all the fear and insecurity she had been feeling just moments before. The resentment she felt towards Tony for him knowing. She smiled slightly as another tear dropped onto her cheek. She was relieved.

"You're not gonna lose me, Tony" Kate replied honestly, her voice no louder than a whisper.

"You're not... mad at me?" He asked, completely and utterly shocked by Kate's sudden change. He honestly thought that this would be the end.

"No. It's not your fault. I was mad at myself but now I'm kind of relieved, to be honest"

As relieved as she was, she felt awful that she had burdened Tony with that information. It wasn't his problem. He shouldn't have to deal with it. Not on top of everything else.

"Good" Tony smiled genuinely. "I'm glad, really Kate". He reached over and took one of Kate's hands from her lap and laced his fingers through hers. "You know that I am always here for you and that you can tell me anything, right? If you want to talk about it, or anything, you know I will listen, Kate. You don't need to be afraid of telling me anything, and I mean _anything_, Kate. I don't want you to keep secrets like that. Its not healthy. Even if you don't tell me, just promise me you will tell somebody, okay?"

"Okay" Kate squeezed Tony's hand. "And... Thank you" she shrugged ever so slightly.

"Kate?" Tony asked awkwardly. "Can I ask you something?"

"...sure" Kate knew what was coming, it was bound to come up sometime, and she was kind of glad it was now rather than later.

"What exactly... happened... with him?"

Kate took a deep breath and looked into Tony's eyes. They were so soft and loving they made her feel safe and grounded.

"I mean, you don't have to tell me, its just-"

"-no, no. Its fine. Honest" Kate swallowed hard. "I suppose it's healthy, like you said, to talk about it. And besides, I figured I owe you this much. And a sober version of events"

"You don't owe me anything, Kate"

"Yeah I do, Tony. I owe you an awful lot" Kate brushed it off, pausing again for a few moments to gather the strength and courage she needed to revisit that night. "It was winter break and everyone was home for Christmas... Well, at least for our annual Christmas party anyway" Kate started. She felt Tony's thumb ghost over her slightly bruised knuckles and she relaxed a bit. His soft touch and loving eyes reassuring her that he was there for her. "My older brother Joe had bought his college room mate along with him. I was in my final year of high school and them their final year of college. Anyway, Rob, Joe's friend, was really nice. We'd met him a few times before and he was always really... attentive... whenever it came to me. I was kind of used to that in school, I wasn't exactly in with the popular dipshits of the school but I had a lot of friends, and I never had a problem getting a date to a dance." Tony smiled slightly, of course she didn't. She was beautiful in every way, shape and form. Any man would be lucky to take Kate to a dance! "...But Rob, I don't know, it seemed different. He was older and in college and I liked it. It was silly really. He was cool, he would sneak me drinks at the party and stick up for me if Joe or Tommy said anything. I was so stupid and caught up in the moment that I flirted back. Towards the end of the night when most people had gone home or to bed, he was helping me tidy up the back room. Next thing I knew I was pinned to the wall and his tongue was in my mouth..." Tony felt his blood turn to ice and his stomach churn. Maybe he wasn't ready to hear this after all. "I didn't react at first but after a few seconds, I did. I liked it, making out with him. He made me feel special and beautiful. Honestly, in that moment, I probably would have willingly gone all the way with him if it hadn't been for Rachael walking into the room. She wasn't impressed and pulled Rob off me, screaming at him that I was only just turned 17. That I was still a kid. I hated her so much in that moment, she had done the exact same thing when she was 15 with the boy next door... Who was she to be so hypocritical? Anyway, Rob stormed off and Rachael told me she was sneaking out to meet her boyfriend and to cover for her. I finished tidying up and went to bed. I realised Rachael was right, she had regretted what she had done and didn't want me to make the same mistake. So I went to sleep. Then at like three in the morning I heard my bedroom door creek open. I assumed it was Rach coming home, but it wasn't. He climbed into my bed and got on top of me. I told him no but he told me to be quiet and put his hand over my mouth. I tried to scream and push him off me, but I couldn't. No matter how hard I tried... And well, you know what happened next" both Kate and Tony were crying, and Grace had fallen asleep in her highchair ages ago. "He kept telling me he was taking what was his and that I deserved it. I was a slut and had been leading him on for years. That nobody would believe me if I told. I guess you hear something over and over enough times, you start to believe it".

"Kate, I'm so sorry" Tony sighed, wrapping his arm around Kate's shoulder gently as she leaned against him, her tears soaking his shirt. She had never told anyone that before, she hadn't even really told Rachael all the details when she had told her.

She felt so vulnerable and stripped, but she also felt lighter for it. Tony hoped that she felt better. That it would stop eating her alive. Maybe this awful thing would bring them closer. Maybe by saying it out loud, to another living being, that Kate would maybe get some sort of closure from it. That she would stop shutting herself down and not allowing herself to get close to people. Maybe this was the push she needed to finally have the chance to be open and happy. To maybe feel like an 18 year old, an 18 year old single mother, but an 18 year old nonetheless.

Tony could tell Kate was scared. She had been attacked twice in so many years, who wouldn't be? The first incident was bad enough, but when you think you're finally getting on with your life and you're happy, you get attacked in a parking lot. He was surprised that she had even opened up fully, let alone to him. A man. He kissed the top of her head, trying to comfort her.

"Its okay, Kate. I'm here and nothing bad is gonna happen again. I promise. I won't let it" he whispered to her soothingly.

"I know" Kate sniffled. And she did. She knew Tony meant every word he was saying. The fact he hardly ever left her side was proof.

Kate almost fell back to sleep, the beating of Tony's heart lulling her. After a few moments she finally sat up and wiped her cheeks with her good hand and caught sight of the time from the clock on the wall.

"Shit, Tony. Its almost 7!"

"Yeah, so?" Tony asked.

"So, you've got football practice in 20 minutes-"

"-Kate"

"No, Tony. You've already missed a days worth of lessons because of me! I'm not being held responsible for the team missing their star player too!" Kate replied in a lighter tone, although she was still deadly serious.

"Kate, I honestly have more important things than football practice right now"

"Oh you mean like looking after me?" Kate cocked her perfectly shaped eyebrow. "Look, you'll be gone for like 2 hours at the most. I've got to phone my mom and tell her what happened anyway. And besides, I've got to get used to doing things alone. I can't rely on you for everything"

"But-"

"-no 'buts' Tony. You're going to practice and that's final!" Tony's face, as much as he tried to hide it, was full of worry. "Look, I'll be fine" Kate smiled reassuringly, reading Tony's face like a book. "Honest. And if I'm not, then I'll call Abby. You've done so much for me already, you deserve a few hours to yourself. If you don't go for you, then do this for me. Please?"

"Fine" Tony sighed. He would willingly jump in front of a bus if Kate asked him to. "Okay. But I'm coming back here as soon as I've finished!"

"I wouldn't have it any other way" Kate smirked. "Oh, and Tony?" She called as he was halfway out her front door. "Can you bring Chris with you later, I want to thank him for minding Gracie last night".

Once the front door clicked shut, Kate released a shaky breath she was unaware she had been holding. The past 24 hours had just been a mess. One bad thing after another. She looked over at her beautiful baby and watched her sleep. This always seemed to soothe Kate, watching her daughters tiny (food covered) chest rise and fall and listen to the soft, adorable snores coming from her little button nose. As much as Grace was a constant reminder of that horrible night, she was also a reminder of everything Kate had overcome and the person she was today. Grace had made her a better person in just a matter of months. She seemed to have that effect on almost everybody who came into contact with her without even knowing it.

Kate woke Grace up and began to feed her a yoghurt. It was tricky at first but once Kate had figured out that if she held the pot with her cast arm and fed Grace with her good one, it was easier. Tony usually let Grace feed herself but there was no way Kate was going to be cleaning the kitchen walls with a broken arm. Once the baby finished the yoghurt, Kate wiped her down with a baby wipe before scooping her out of the highchair. Kate winced in pain as her ribs began to throb, but she ignored it and placed Grace down in front of the TV next to her on the sofa. She half watched the cartoon Grace was engrossed in, trying as long as she could to put off having to actually call her mother and tell her she had been hurt. She knew her mother would most likely drive up here and stay there until Grace was of legal drinking age, but she also knew she couldn't keep it from her. Not now she was a mother herself and especially not now her sister knew and would tell their mother if Kate didn't. Kate sighed and picked up the phone. This was going to be a long and hard conversation.

_**Sorry this chapter is kinda short, there was more but I decided to put the other half in the next chapter. I'm not really sure about this chapter but I hope you guys liked it anyway! Please let me know what you think. Are Kate and Tony really going to be okay and come out of this stronger or is Kate gonna end up pushing him away? Thoughts?**_

Anyway, hopefully the next chapter will be up soon-ish. The more you review the quicker I will update muahahahahaha ;)


	12. Chapter 12

Abby had been going stir crazy all day. She had been constantly texting Tony to check up on Kate and was over the moon when Tony had text her, asking if she would go and watch Kate for a few hours. When Abby got to Kate's, Kate looked stressed and annoyed and was on the phone to her mother.

"No mom, I don't need you to come and look after me!" Kate huffed, opening her front door and letting Abby in. Abby headed straight for the sofa and her niece, as she liked to call her. "Because, I'm fine. I've broken my arm before... Yes I know falling out of a tree when you're 7 is different... I'm not a child anymore!... That's not what I'm saying and you know it!... Tony's here... Well of course I want to see you but-... Yes... Look mom, I gotta go... Fine... Love you too. Bye" Kate sighed and rolled her eyes as she slipped her phone back in her pocket. "Sorry about that, Abs"

"Its fine, Kate"

Kate studied Abby's face for a second. She knew Abby and she knew right now that Abby wanted to hug her, but didn't want to hurt her, or maybe overstep some sort of boundary. Abby almost looked like she was going to explode.

"You gonna hug me then, or what?" Kate smirked.

Abby was up like a shot and almost knocked Kate off her feet.

"Owww Abs, ribs!" Kate hissed, Abby's hugs were bone crushing enough on a regular day.

"I'm sorry, Kate!" Abby sighed, loosening her grip on her best friend. "Its just I was so worried about you!"

"I know"

"And then last night you were saying all this crazy stuff about mean unicorns and Gibbs leprechauns and Tony in tights and I just, oh God I'm so glad you're okay!" Abby tightened her grip again as she stopped rambling.

Kate felt her cheeks flush slightly. She had no recollection of what happened after her attack last night, but unicorns, leprechauns and Tony in tights sounded mortifying! She didn't know what was worse, the fact she had been attacked or the way she reacted to her pain meds.

"Abs?" Kate spoke once Abby finally released her. "What did I say last night?"

A slight pang of panic ran through Kate's veins. She hoped and prayed she hadn't told Abby about the rape. She knew she probably would have to one day but she really wasn't up for it right now. Abby finding that out was something else.

It was a little after 10pm when Tony, accompanied by Chris, returned home. Kate had fallen asleep 20 minutes ago on the sofa and Abby was trying to get Grace off when Tony entered the dorm.

"Shhhhhh!" Abby hushed them before they were even through the door. "Kate's sleeping and I'm trying to get Grace to sleep too"

"I'll come back tomorrow then" Chris smiled before quietly heading out of Kate's dorm.

"Here, Abs" Tony offered. "She always nods off for me"

Abby handed Tony the groggy baby before turning around and throwing a blanket over Kate's tiny, sleeping form.

"How long has she been out?" Tony asked, gently bouncing and swaying Grace in his arms.

"'bout 20 minutes, not long after her last round of pills for the day" Abby shrugged, picking up Grace's toys from the living room floor and placing them in the bright pink toy box near the TV.

"Was she okay tonight?"

"As okay as she could be I suppose. She was tired and seemed stressed. I can't blame her though" Abby smiled sadly as both she and Tony watched over Kate like hawks. "She's trying to hide it, but she's scared, Tony"

"I know" Tony sighed, walking into Kate's bedroom and putting a now sleeping Grace into her cot. "How'd she get into her pyjamas?" Tony asked as he re-entered the living room and realised Kate was wearing pink pyjama bottoms and a white tank top.

"I helped her. Gave her a quick wash, got her into her pyjamas, gave her her pills and then she conked out"

Tony couldn't help but feel slightly jealous but quickly ignored the feeling. Now was not a time to think of Kate in a sexual way.

"Oh, well, thanks" Tony smiled, pulling his other best friend into a hug.

"It was my pleasure - well, y'know" Abby replied. Sure, she was more than happy to do it but she just wasn't happy Kate needed to be in such a state for her to need somebody to do those simple tasks for her. "Well, I'd best be going now then" Abby sighed, reluctantly.

"Wait, lemme walk you"

Abby's dorm was less than a five minute walk away from Kate's, but it was late and there was no way Tony was letting Abby walk alone in the dark.

As Abby collected her belongings and put her jacket on, Tony checked on Grace and Kate before heading out into the warm spring night.

"Tony... Are you okay?" Abby asked, her arm linked with Tony's as they walked. "Its just, I know you, and I know this whole Kate situation is stressful... but, I don't know, it just seems... more?"

"I'm fine Abby. Honest. I'm just tired and worried I suppose" Tony shrugged.

Abby narrowed her eyes, knowing Tony was keeping something from her but chose not to push him. Tony walked her right to her front door, smiling and hugging her goodbye before he left.

When Tony got back to Kate's apartment, Kate was as how he had left her: passed out on the couch. Gently he tried poking Kate to wake her up, but Kate just started to snore slightly. Tony smiled. God she was adorable! Carefully, he placed his arms under Kate and scooped her up and carried her into her bedroom. Kate stirred slightly but seemed to relax almost instantly into his arms. Once he had placed her into bed he headed back to the living room, stripped to his boxer shorts and made himself comfortable on the couch.

Kate didn't know if it was her body clock, her daughter or the amount of pain she was in that woke her up just after 6am. Normally Grace would be screaming but right now she was just chewing the wooden bar in her crib and mumbling nonsense to herself. Kate had no idea how she had fallen asleep and ended up in her own bed, but figured Abby must have put her to bed after she took her pills.

"Morning sweetie" Kate smiled to her daughter. "Mommy will be right back, okay?"

Kate padded out of her bedroom and almost stopped dead in her tracks when she saw Tony asleep on the sofa. His legs were hanging off the end and his blanket had fallen off him in the night. He looked so adorable in that moment and Kate couldn't help but smile, forgetting about the pain she was in for a few moments. Kate pulled the blanket over his almost naked body as she headed to the kitchen in search of her pills. Just as Kate swallowed two of the white pills, Kate heard footsteps.

"Morning sleepy head" Tony yawned sleepily, stretching his arms above his head.

Kate almost choked on her mouthful of water as she turned around and saw Tony's toned torso flexing, the light dancing off his skin beautifully.

"Morning" Kate replied, blushing slightly. "Did I wake you?"

"Nah" Tony shrugged. "You're looking better this morning" he added, noticing the colour was coming back to Kate's face and her eyes were starting to sparkle again.

Kate was sure that the only reason the colour was back in her face was because she was most probably blushing violently. Truth be told, she felt like total crap!

"Thanks. I'm gonna get breakfast started" Kate replied, looking in the fridge for something to eat. "Can you feed Gracie for me?"

"Sure!" Tony smiled before turning on his heal and heading to Kate's room to pick up the baby.

Kate took the few breif moments that she was alone, fixing her messy bed hair and rubbing the sleep out of her eyes in the toaster. She had no idea why she suddenly cared about her apearence aroud Tony, but she did. She grimaced at her reflection, the angry mix of blue and black and purple that resided on her left cheek did not seem to be healing, only getting angrier and taking up more of her face day by day. (Actually, it was getting better, but Kate's low self esteem only saw the opposite).

Tony came back into the kitchen, carrying Grace in his arm and seemingly, in a deep conversation with her. Of course, it was only Tony who was talking and Grace was just watching him intently, her tiny, chubby fingers playing with Tony's morning stubble.

As Tony fed Grace, he watched Kate with the corner of his eye manuvering around her kitchen and making breakfast one handed. She seemed to struggle a bit, but was more or less on top of things. Tony wanted nothing more than to tell her to sit down and rest and let him do it, but he knew he would be wasting his breath. There was a limit to Kate, and her asking him to feed Grace, that was big for Kate, and so he decided to stay quiet. And besides, there was something incredibly sexy about the way Kate was making pancakes with one hand. The only help she needed was flipping, which she couldn't do with or without broken ribs and a broken arm. Tony gladly flipped the pancakes, Kate half expected them to end up on the ceiling the way Tony was throwing the pan with such force. He didn't, of course.

After breakfast, Tony jumped in Kate's shower and Kate sat on the sofa, Grace in her lap as they watched _In The Night Garden. _As _Iggle Piggle _began to dance to the Iggle Piggle song, there was a knock at the door. Kate gently pushed Grace off her lap as she went to answer the door.

"Oh, Chris. Hi" Kate smiled. "Come in" she stepped aside to let Tony's best friend in. "Sit" Kate motioned to the sofa.

"Hey you!" Chris said in a silly tone, less awkward around Grace than he usually was. Sitting down next to the baby and Kate taking the seat the other side.

"I wasn't sure if this was too early or not" Chris started. He had decided to drop in to see Kate on his way to his first lesson of the day.

"No" Kate laughed slightly before wincing in pain. "It's fine. Thank you for coming. I just wanted to thank you for minding Little Gracie the other night. I know you're not so good with kids, and it really did mean a lot. Thank you" Kate smiled genuinley, the muffled sound of Tony singing _Here I Go Again _by Whitesnake causing both Kate and Chris to snort in laughter.

"Honestly, Kate, it was no problem. She's kinda cute and I think she likes me" Chris shrugged. "How are you anyway?"

"I'm okay, I suppose" Kate sighed. "Tony's helping. A lot"

"He really likes you, y'know. And Grace. He was so worried that night. I've never seen him... or anyone for that matter, look so... helpless. I'm glad you're okay though, Kate!"

There was a moment of silence before Chris added "Well, i'd better be off, class in 15. I'll pop in later. Bye" and headed out the door.

Just as the door clicked shut, Tony walked out of the bathroom in nothing but a towel and a cloud of steam behind him. Very McSteamy Kate thought to herself with a sly smile.

"Was that Chris?" Tony asked.

"Yeah, he just popped by so I could thank him" Kate replied, trying hard to look anywhere but Tony's damp and oh-so-appealing torso. "How was your shower, _David Coverdale?_"

Tony went wide eyed for a second, he had no idea he had been singing so loudly. He could either be embarrassed by this, or he could join in and laugh alongside Kate. He decided to laugh alongside her, because if there was anything either of themneeded right now, it was a laugh.

"Rockin'" Tony smirked before grabbing his black duffle bag full of clothes and heading back in to the bathroom, turning and looking at Kate over his shoulder and singing "_Here I go again on my own_" causing Kate to laugh out loud.

He always knew how to make her smile.

_**This chapter was so hard for me to write, so i'm sorry. It probably sucks but ah well! That, along with super crappy family problems is the reason it took a while to update. I literally re-wrote this chater about four times, and this version was the one I hated the least so I stuck with it. I thought some cute Tate fluff was in order after the past few chapters. They're starting to look at each other in a different light now, is this a good thing? Are things going to stay this good and easy between them? Let me know what you think! Also, have no idea if In The Night Garden airs in the USA, I Gooled it and Google said it did but I could be wrong. So sorry if it doesn't but i'm English and this is fiction hehehe.**_

_**P.S. HAS ANYONE READ THE FAULT IN OUR STARS ?! Other than fanfiction, I am not a reader. Like, other than in school, I have only ever read one book for 'pleasure'... and that took me over a year. But anyway, i've wanted to read TFiOS for a while now and I finally did... in less than 24 hours. Honestly, if you haven't already read it DO IT DO IT DO IT. This is coming from a person that has literally only ever read one book. Okay, enough about the genius that is John Green (also thanks John for making me even more concious about my own writing). **_

_**Gina xo**_


	13. Chapter 13

"Mama, can you say it? _Ma-ma_" Tony bounced Grace on his knee, trying his hardest to get Grace to say her first words.

Tony could hear Kate behind him in the kitchen, shuffling about making dinner, singing along softly to the Warren Zevon CD he had come to love. She had gotten her taste in music from her father and eldest brother and had passed it on to Tony. Not that he was complaining. Suddenly, the smell of Kate's famous hamburgers filled Tony's nostrils and he couldn't help but sigh happily. Everything about that moment felt perfect; Kate's soft singing as she pottered around the kitchen, Tony trying to teach Grace how to speak whilst the smell of hamburgers filled the apartment. Tony could honestly not remember a time in his life when he had ever been happier. Well, that was until Grace babled _Mama _a couple of seconds later.

As Kate came rushing over, there was a knock at the front door.

"I'll get it" Tony smiled, handing Kate the baby as he headed for the front door. Behind him he could hear Grace repeating _Mama _and Kate's excited coos and encouragements inbetween the shower of kisses she was currently raining down onto Grace's chubby cheeks.

As soon as Tony opened the front door, he felt a fist hit his face with such a force it knocked him to the ground. Before he even had time to register what had happened, he felt his wrists being bound together behind his back by one man as another stepped over him and walked towards Kate's direction. The next thing he knew he heard Kate let out a blood curdling scream before hearing another loud thump on the floor.

"SHUT THEM UP!" he heard a voice say from behind him, referring to both Kate and Grace's cries.

"Kate!" Tony shouted, trying to wriggle free from his restraints. He lifted his head up and he saw Kate on the floor in the same position as him, tears and blood pouring down her face. He had never seen such a look of pure terror before, and he was sure his face mirrored Kate's. She was screaming for him, but there was nothing he could do. He couldn't move. He couldn't save her. The harder he tried, the tighter his restraints got.

"I said shut that bitch up!" The voice from behind Tony growled again. Tony kept his eyes on Kate as the man from behind him stepped forward and walked towards Kate, her screams getting louder and more terrified.

"Tony!" She screamed, looking into Tony's helpless eyes as the man grabbed her by the back of the head.

Tony closed his eyes and swallowed hard. Before he had the chance to open them, he felt the spray of something warm and sweet drench his body before the room fell silent, bar his own ragged, terrified breathing.

"KATE!" He screamed once he opened his eyes to a pool of red and a silent, lifeless Kate. "KATE!" He cried again, feeling like his lungs were going to give in from lack of oxygen. "Katie, no!"

Tony was sure he could hear Kate calling his name in that moment. Not so much screaming it like she was before but he was certain he could hear her sweet, caring voice.

**"Tony!"**

Tony shot up from the sofa, his body drenched in sweat from head to toe, his heart pounding in his chest and his breath ragged and uneven. It took him a few moments to become undiscombobulated. He swallowed hard as he brought his shaking, sweat-drenched hands to his face and flipped them over a couple of times before he looked up. He was met with a concerned looting Kate. It was dark and the moonlight bounced of her pronounced cheek bones. He reached out his hand to her face to make sure she was real. Kate leaned against his touch and brought her own hand up to her face and covered his.

"It's okay, Tony. It was just a bad dream. You're okay. You're safe" Kate spoke in a soft, soothing tone, her finger rubbing soft circles against the back of Tony's hand.

After a few deep breaths, Tony pulled Kate into his arms and held her tightly. Both of them forgetting about her injuries. Behind Kate's head he could see the credits of a movie rolling.

"Are you okay?" Kate asked after a few minutes, her hand now cupping his damp cheek. Tony's heart rate and breathing now resembling that of a normal persons, beating in synch with Kate's.

"Yeah, I think so" Tony smiled uneasily.

Truth be told, this had happened several times before. He would fall asleep watching some movie and then that movie would become his dream. Tonight's movie of choice; _Law Abiding Citizen. _It had happened the night before with _Taken_ (He had dreamed Kate had been kidnapped and he was Liam Neeson trying to save her) and the week before that it had been some weird Silence Of The Lambs shit that he couldn't really remember. But they had never been this bad, this realistic and graphic. Heck, he had never woken Kate up screaming before. Only himself. He wondered if he should start watching sappy chick-flicks if he so often dreamed (or had nightmares) about the movies he watched before bed. He couldn't even finish the thought without cracking up, him, Tony DiNozzo, watching a chick-flick, that would never happen. Or so he thought.

"Do you wanna talk about it?"

"No, not really. I just wanna try and forget it if i'm honest, Kate. I really don't want to re-live it"

"It was just a Bête Noire, Tony"

Tony's lips formed a crooked smile. _B__ê__te Noire. _Kate speaking French was both incredibly sexy as well as adorable.

"Yeah, I suppose" Tony shrugged. "I'm sorry I woke you"

"You can make it up to me by going to make me some warm milk" Kate winked cheekily.

"As you wish, m'lady" Tony smiled, placing a peck on Kate's cheek, dangerously close to the corner of her mouth before he got off the sofa and headed for the kitchen.

As Tony waited for the milk to warm up, Kate pulled the soaking bedsheets from the couch with a bit of a struggle.

"I'm gonna get you some fresh sheets. These are soaked through"

Just as Kate returned with some fresh, clean bed linens, Tony brought two cups of warm milk into the living room.

"Here, lemme help" Tony offered, placing the mugs down and grabbing the other end of the light blue sheet and draping it over the sofa. "Again, i'm sorry" Tony added, feeling slightly embarrassed and bad by the whole situation. He felt guilt he had woken Kate up at 3am.

"Stop saying you're sorry" Kate threw the pillow expertly, hitting Tony square in the face. "It's a sign of weakness" she added in the deepest, roughest, Gibbs-like voice she would muster earning a smirk out of Tony.

"Okay, now we're gonna watch a nice, happy movie and i'm gonna stay here until you fall asleep" Kate crouched down as she looked through her DVD collection.

There were some of Tony's DVDs mixed in among hers and, other than her daughter, that sight seemed like the most beautiful, perfect thing in the world. As did Tony's toiletries mixed in with hers in the bathroom; his toothbrush in the holder next to hers, his shower gel and shampoo mixed in with hers, his clothes mixed with hers in the laundry hamper.

"Kate" Tony sighed. "You really don't have to do this-"

"-Nonsense Tony. You have exeeded yourself in looking after me. Let me do this one little thing for you. It's my turn to look after you and protect you" Kate brushed it off, reaching for the film she hoped would bore Tony to sleep quickest.

_A Walk To Remember. _Total chick-flick. Tony would fall asleep 10 minutes into it, right? Wrong. Tony DiNozzo (along with Kate) would be sobbing his heart out 101 minutes later.

"Seriously Kate" Tony scoffed as Kate put the DVD into the player as Tony examined the DVD cover.

"What? This should put you to sleep in no time"

**101 minutes and a tragic love story later.**

"Tony... are you crying?" Kate sniffled.

"No!" Tony replied a little too quickly, his voice all high and squeaky. "It's just, she told him not to fall in love with her... and he did! And then she died!" Tony cried.

At the start of the movie, they had started off at a respectable didtance from one another on the couch, but somewhere between Landon starting community service and tutoring the less fortunate kids, they had ended up scooting closer to one another and cuddling. Tony's arm was wrapped around Kate's shoulders as her head rested on his chest, her casted arm draped across his stomach, their fingertips dancing ever so gently, barely touching each other like the other was a flame.

"Why did you do that to me, Kate?!" Tony sniffled.

"You were supposed to fall asleep, not fall in love!"

Tony let out a high-pitched squeak as Kate's retort reminded him of the movie.

"Stupid chick movies!" Tony mumbled to himself.

"Oh, if only Abby and all your jock buddies could see you now" Kate smirked, looking up at the blubbering mess that was Tony DiNozzo. Not so macho now.

"If you tell _anyone _about this, I will kill you"

"_Tony likes girl movies! Tony likes girl movies!" _Kate teased in a sing-song voice.

"Do not!"

"Do too!"

"Not!"

"Too!"

"Not!"

"Too!"

"Not!"

"I'll believe it when you can go five minutes without crying"

"I'm not crying"

"Are"

"Not"

"Are"

Tony narrowed his eyes at Kate and bit his lip as his face lit up, the way it always did whenever he got an idea of the mischievous nature.

"NO!" Kate tried to push herself away from Tony, knowing what was coming next. "Tony, no! My ribs. You can't"

As Kate tried to wiggle free, Tony pulled her so she was sitting across his lap and began to tickle her, steering clear of her ribs knowing that she was still sore and sensitive.

"Tony, no! Stop!" Kate laughed, still trying to wriggle free from his grip.

"Not until you admit that I don't like chick movies!" Tony grinned, looking down at Kate.

"Never!"

"Then i'm not gonna stop" Tony shrugged, pinning Kate down and tickling her even harder.

Kate tried as hard as she could to wriggle free. She hated being tickled, but somehow, being pinned underneath Tony as he tickled her didn't seem that bad. Her ribs were starting to hurt now from all the wriggling and laughing but there was no way she was going to let Tony win. He wanted a fight, well she would give her one. She pushed away from Tony with her hips, wrapping her legs around his waist and flipping their positions so now she was straddling his waist, pinning him down. Growing up with three older brothers was starting to pay off.

"Whoa!" Tony laughed, one of his arms on the floor, supporting the both of them from falling off the side of the sofa. "Where'd you learn to fight dirty?"

"Three older brothers, remember?"

"Right. Y'know Katie, i'm sure theres some unresolved problems there" Tony laughed.

_Katie. _That nickmane wasn't lost on either of them. Neither was the fact they both liked this new dynamic of their friendship. Kinda flirty. They also both liked the fact Kate was currently straddling Tony, but that is something they both pushed to the furthest corners of their minds and hoped they could bury it. They couldn't, of course.

"Okay, get off me now"

"No" Kate crossed her arms across her chest defiantly. As Tony began to wriggle, Kate squeezed her thighs tighter, well and truly trapping Tony beneath her.

"Well played" Tony smiled up at her. The only ways he could think of to get out of this would involve hurting Kate. And, if he was honest, he didn't really want to move from beneath Kate anyway.

"I will let you go when you admit that you like _'chick movies'_"

"I will never admit to that, Katie. Not even if my life depended on it"

There is was again. _Katie. _Apparently it was sticking.

"Oh, _that_ can be arranged!" Kate smirked.

"Pleaseeee?" Tony tried a new tactic, looking up at Kate with the best puppy-dog eyes he could.

"So thats how you got so many girls to sleep with you!"

"What?"

"Begging"

"Y'know, Katie-pie. You're really gonna regret all of this really soon" Tony narrowed his eyes once again, looking up at a smug Kate.

"Oh, am I?"

"Yeah"

"You wriggle free and prove it then"

"I would if you didn't have thighs of steel" Tony huffed, trying, and failing once again to wriggle free.

"You know what you have to do to get out of this"

"Who said I didn't like having you straddle me and be all Dominatrix?" Tony waggled his eyebrows.

"Ew, Tony! That's so gross!" Kate squeezed her legs a bit harder, revelling in the effect she was having on Tony right in this moment.

Tony let out a dirty chuckle before recieving a punch in his shoulder.

"Ow!" he looked to his shoulder then back up at Kate. "You're mean"

"I thought you liked me being all Dominatrix" Kate raised an eyebrow.

"I like you being all sweet and lovely better"

"Well, admit that you like chick-flicks and I will go back to being _all sweet and lovely_"

"Fine" Tony huffed, imagining them still being in this position and arguing when they were 90 years old. They were both so stubborn that Tony honestly thought that was a possibility. "I like chick movies" he said through gritted teeth and in a tone that resembled a whisper.

"Louder. Like you mean it"

Tony stared up at Kate's smiling, dimply face for a few moments. Even with her hair in a messy bun, all sleep deprived and make-upless, she really was beautiful.

"I like chick movies" Tony huffed in a monotone voice.

"Hmph" Kate narrowed her eyes as she looked down at him. This was the best she was going to get. "I suppose that will do" she shrugged before rolling off Tony and sitting on the arm of the sofa. "I win"

"Only because I let you"

"Yeah, yeah" Kate scoffed as she picked up their empty cups and taking them to the kitchen.

They had both forgotten that the only item of clothing Tony was wearing was a pair of boxer shorts until Kate was already in the kitchen washing the cups. Not to mention Kate was only wearing short, velvet shorts and an oversized t-shirt that once belonged to Tony. Both of them felt a shiver race down their spines once they had come to that realisation. That there were only a few thin layers of material between them. Again, both of them pushed this realisation and the odd string of feelings that came along with it, to the back of their minds in the hopes of burying and forgetting them. And just like with all the other thoughts and feelings they were hoping to bury, they couldn't. Not for long at least.

It was almost 6am and Grace would be up soon. Kate was glad it was a Saturday and she didn't have to do much today.

"So" Tony spoke as he walked into the kitchen behind Kate. "I was thinking we could go out for breakfast today. Ducky's been asking about you"

"He has? Thats sweet" Kate smiled. "Sure, that sounds nice. Plus, theres no food in the cupboards, we need to go shopping anyway"

"Then its settled. My treat"

_**Okay this was just a silly, cutesy chapter. More of a filler... but it was jam-packed full of Tate so what can you do;-) **_

_**Thank you for the reviews, pleaseeeeeee keep them coming and I will keep the Tate coming! **_

_**Ciao. **_


	14. Chapter 14

Tony liked Kate. In fact, he liked her_ a lot_. He had come to this conclusion on the silent, 5 and a half hour drive from the college to Kate's childhood home. He had had feelings for Kate for a while now, probably from the minute he met her but he had never really thought about them until now.

Kate was fast asleep in the passenger seat, her head propped up against a pillow against the window and a faux-fur blanket draped across her while Grace snored away in her car seat in the back. Tony was alone in the car, with only his thoughts to keep him company. He didn't dare turn the radio on in fear he might wake Kate or Grace, neither of them slept particularly well the night before. And so he came to the conclusion that he in fact, liked Kate in every way shape and form possible.

He must do if he was willingly going to Indiana with her for the weekend for her parents' 30th wedding anniversary. Or the fact he had practically been living with her and waiting on her hand and foot for the past couple of months. Or that he willingly, out of the goodness of his heart looked after her daughter every day while she went to class. Or the fact he hadn't even looked at another girl in the past 6 months, let alone slept with one.

The fact that he lugged both his small, albeit heavy, duffle-bag and Kate's massive, over-stuffed suitcase up two flights of stairs to her childhood bedroom just confirmed what he already knew. He was a gentleman, but there was no way in hell he would consider doing this for anyone other than Kate.

"Are you sure you're okay, Tony?" Kate asked, a sleeping Grace on her hip just a few stairs ahead of Tony.

"I'm fine" Tony strained. He was sure his blood vessels were going to explode he was straining that much.

"Are you sure? I mean I'm sure my Dad or one of my brothers will help-"

"-honestly, Katie, I'm fine. Just a few more steps to go!" Tony smiled weakly, a bead of sweat rolled down the back of his neck and pooled between his shoulder blades.

Seriously, both Kate and Grace were tiny. How much stuff did they need for a three day visit?

"Jeez Caitlin!" Kate heard he father strain from the floor below. "Did you pack your whole apartment?!" He exclaimed, lugging up a slightly smaller, but just as heavy, case than the one Tony was dragging behind him.

Kate just rolled her eyes. She had never been a light traveller to begin with, but now she had Grace, travelling lightly just wasn't an option. She had packed 2/3 of her daughters wardrobe, brought all of her toys, her play pen(despite the fact her parents had one in the attic) and enough diapers and baby food to last a lifetime. And yes, there was a supermarket 5 minutes down the road, but that didn't stop Kate from worrying that she would forget something she majorly needed.

"Dammit Martha! Now we're trapped! I told you that you wouldn't fit through that gap!" Richard sighed loudly. Kate looked over the bannister to see her mother and father wedged between the wall and the bannister, the suitcase between them, both red faced, out of breath and trying to wriggle free.

She couldn't help but smile at that image.

She took a deep breath before she pushed the white door to her bedroom open and felt her cheeks blush that it was exactly how she left it. Of course, it shouldn't have surprised her as she knew her parents kept all the kids' rooms exactly as they left them. The kids' rooms were Martha and Richards shrines to their five, now grown-up children.

"Whoa, Kate!" Tony exclaimed as he followed her into the room, looking around in amazement. He couldn't help but picture Kate sneaking him into here and them making out on her bed for hours before he climbed out of the window once he heard Papa Todd coming.

"What?" Kate asked, narrowing her green-brown eyes at him.

"Its just so..." Tony heard Kate ask another skeptical 'what' while he fumbled around for the right word. "...girly" Tony scrunched his nose slightly. It certainly was not what he was expecting.

Kate had a fluffy cream carpet paired with cream walls and a light pink feature wall. Photos of what Tony assumed were all Kate's old friends littered the walls. However he noticed that baby pictures of Grace had been plastered atop of a lot of them. She had a large double bed in the corner of her room, white bedsheets with a gray, lilac and pink pattern of flowers and perfume bottles and old fashioned keys with a wooden bed frame and white flower and butterfly twinkly lights laced between the wooden bars of the headboard. She had light pink curtains with a white paisley pattern. There was a white pine desk in the opposite corner with photo frames in one corner and an empty half, where Tony assumed Kate's laptop once resided. There was a bookshelf next to a giant wardrobe, jam-packed with books, both old and new and on the wall by her bed there was another door which led to the en-suite bathroom that connected Kate's room with Rachaels.

"I decorated it when I was 14!" Kate defended, placing her half asleep daughter in the middle of her bed. "I wanted a 'big girl' room and this is what I chose! Its not _that_ bad!"

"I never said it was!" Tony threw his hands up in defense. "Its just not what I expected, that's all"

The sound of heavy wheezing began to echo through the hallway and Tony dashed out to help Kate's father with the other case, bringing it into Kate's room. Martha and Richard headed back down the stairs to get refreshments while Kate unfolded Grace's play pen and Tony sat on her bed catching his breath.

"Where am I putting this?" Tony asked a few minutes later, hoisting his black sports bag over his shoulder.

"You're in Tommy's room, which was originally Rick's room before he joined the Marines. You and Rick will be in there" she said as she led the way back down a flight of stairs to the middle level of the three storey home.

Tony swallowed hard. He knew Kate's eldest brother was a Marine and he knew he would be sharing a room with him but it had never really sunk in until now.

"Relax, Tony" Kate smiled sweetly and placing an hand on his shoulder as she opened the bedroom door, reading Tony like an open book. "Rick is fine. You have nothing to worry about. You both love sports and movies so you won't have to worry about it being awkward"

"Yeah but, he's a _Marine_, Kate. And he's like 30. He could kill me, Kate, and make it look like an accident!"

"He's 29, Tony" Kate replied as though it actually made a difference to Tony. "And yeah, so could I" Kate winked with a laugh. "It's not Rick you have to worry about anyway" Kate added, her voice no louder than a whisper and filled with a tinge of both sadness and annoyance.

"Where is Joe anyway?" Tony asked, knowing exactly what Kate meant. He too could read her like an open book. She was the most beautiful piece of literature in Tony's eyes, and he loved reading every beautiful word that made her whole.

"Probably in the basement. His car was in the drive and his coat was hanging up so he's probably down there watching TV or playing X-Box or something" Kate shrugged, sitting on the edge of her brothers bed and looking at her lap.

She didn't know why she expected her big brother to come greet her at the door with smiles and open arms, she knew better. But for some reason, she did. She had expected him to at least put his stupid ego aside and at least try for their parents sake, but it seemed he was back to ignoring her completely. If he wasn't ignoring her, he was acting like she was an immature child and telling her how to run her life. She didn't know which was worse, but at least when he was telling her what to do he acknowledged her existence. He could have at least come to greet his niece, she hadn't done anything to him.

"Okay, am I gonna have to share a bed with Big Marine Rick?" Tony asked, sensing that Kate needed to take her mind off her twat of a brother.

"There's an airbed and spare bedding in the airing cupboard downstairs" Kate smirked. "Unless you wanna snuggle with Rick"

Tony narrowed his eyes at Kate who was currently smirking and waggling her eyebrows. "Are you sure Rick isn't gonna hate me? I've slept in my car before I'm sure I can do it again"

"I'm positive, Tony" Kate smiled reassuringly. "And on the very, very rare chance he doesn't, you can sleep on my bedroom floor. But that's not gonna happen because Rick is the softest Marine going. He may look like he could kill you with one punch, but he's really a big teddy bear!"

"To his baby sister, maybe" Tony mumbled.

There was some commotion coming from downstairs and then Kate heard her big sister and best friends voice muffled from the bottom floor.

"Rach!" She smiled excitedly before running down the stairs and joining her mother, father and Joe at the door.

"Katie!" Rachael squealed as soon as she saw Kate, giving her brother the cold shoulder and wrapping her arms tightly around her little sister. "I missed you _so much_, Katie. So much!" Rachael smiled, her eyes filling with tears.

"Me too!" Kate squeezed her sister, her ribs protesting a bit and her arm still in a cast.

This was the first time since Christmas that Kate and Rachael had seen one another. It was now mid-June.

"Oh Katie, this is Mark. Mark, this is my baby sister and best friend in the world, Kate" Rachael introduced her boyfriend and sister.

"Pleasure to meet you" Mark smiled, shaking Kate's non-casted hand. "I've heard so much about you"

"And its a pleasure to meet you too, Mark" Kate smiled back as she shook his hand. "I've heard a lot about you too"

Rachael had had a lot of boyfriends, she was beautiful and was the typical 20 year old. Kate had also met a lot of these boyfriends but Mark was the only one that seemed serious. For the past four months, all their phone conversations had revolved around Mark; how funny he was, how tall he was, how hot he was, how smart he was, how good in bed he was. But none of those conversations really did him justice. Rachael was tall, almost 6ft, and Mark seemed like her missing jigsaw piece. He had short, spiky brown hair and soft green eyes. He had a look of David Duchovny, but judging from the bulging muscles under his tight white v neck t-shirt, he had a body like Channing Tatum. He and Rachael really did seem like the perfect couple.

Tony stood on the stairs, not really knowing where he belonged and just watching the family reunion. He hadn't seen Kate look so happy in all the time he'd known her. He could feel Joe's dark green eyes burning his skin, but he chose to take Kate's advice and ignore it.

"And you must be Tony!" He heard Rachael exclaim, pushing past Joe and running to the stairs.

Kate suddenly felt very sorry for Tony as she saw her sister pull Tony into the living room.

"Excuse me, Mr Todd" Mark cleared his throat.

"Son, I've already told you to call me Richard" Richard clapped Mark's shoulder. Rachael had already introduced him to her parents two weeks ago.

Richard and Mark started lugging Rachael's suitcases (who alone carried twice as much as her sister and niece together) up the stairs and Martha had disappeared into the kitchen to check on the chicken she had in the oven, leaving Kate and Joe in the hallway. The air was thick with tension and to say it was awkward would be an understatement.

"Katie" Joe cleared his throat and nodded.

"Oh, so you haven't forgotten I existed then!" Kate snapped. "I saw the way you were looking at Tony and I didn't like it. This is Mom and Dad's weekend and you better not start! I won't have it! You don't know Tony, and don't think you do either!"

"I will look at your boyfriend any way I see fit, Caitlin!"

"Tony isn't my boyfriend. He is my friend, and I swear to God, Joe, if you start anything this weekend..." Kate left it hanging as she walked away from him and going to rescue Tony.

"Oh no, what did he do?" Rachael asked as soon as Kate walked into the living room, causing Tony to look up and turn around.

"What do you think?" Kate replied, her eyes a little teary. "He didn't even say _'hello'_! Or even ask about his niece!"

"He's an ass through and through, Katie! Mom and Dad don't even like him that much. And besides, you've got me and you've got Ricky and Mom and Dad and Tony on your side" Rachael rubbed her little sisters back soothingly as Kate sat between her and Tony.

"I know" Kate sniffled. "I know what he's like and I'm used to it but I just... I don't know, I always expect him to be different. He's my brother and he acts like I don't even exist or that I'm five!"

"I know he does, Katie and I know it upsets you, and I'm sorry" Rachael cooed. "But is he really worth your tears?" She asked, wiping away a stray tear from Kate's cheek. "I mean, why waste your energy and time crying over him when you could spend it having fun with me and Mark and Tony and my little Gracie and Rick and Tommy and their new lady friends when they get here" Rachael smiled a goofy smile she knew would warrant one in return from her sister, which it did.

"Anyway, speaking of my beautiful little niece, where is she? I'm in serious need of some Gracie cuddle time!"

"She's upstairs" Kate replied, sniffling and wiping away the remaining tears in her eyes. "You go get her, I'll be up in a minute" Kate smiled before her sister almost flew off the sofa and up the stairs.

Kate couldn't help the proud smile that spread across her face as she heard Rachael's excited squeals and coos from the top floor. She heard either '_Oh my God, you're so big!_' or '_Oh my God, you smell like a bin!_'... and it could have been either one of those statements to be honest.

"Are you sure you're okay, Kate?" Tony asked, his hand resting gently on her knee. He wanted nothing more than to hold her in his arms and kiss her until she stopped crying, but he settled for the subtle, but meaningful touch.

"Yeah... No, but I will be. I suppose" she half smiled. "Rach was right" Tony nodded and smiled, squeezing her knee comfortingly. "Thank you, Tony" Kate smiled the special smile she reserved just for him.

"Don't thank me just yet" he smiled. "If I'm ever alone in a room with Joe, I may end up punching him!"

Kate just laughed, knowing he was only 20% serious.

"Better not let you out of my sight then" she winked, lacing her fingers with Tony's.

"Um, dya know where your sister went?" Mark asked, gently knocking on the living room door.

"She's upstairs with the baby" Kate smiled.

"Oh" Mark replied, not really knowing what to do. Rachael had told him SO much about her little niece and he was so excited to meet her, he just wasn't sure Kate would let him, and he didn't want to overstep any bounds by going into Kate's room and seeing her child without permission first.

"C,mon, we're heading up now" Kate smiled, pulling Tony up from his spot on the sofa. "I know how excited Rach is for her boyfriend to meet her niece"

By dinner time, the Todd family home was so full of people it seemed it would bust at the seems. It was a large home, it once housed seven people and a dog at one point so it had to be big by nature to fit five kids, a dog and two adult. But now there were all five kids, their boyfriends/girlfriends/Tony's, Kate's parents and a baby. Kate was sharing her room with Grace and Rachael, Tommy and Rick's girlfriends were sharing Rachael's room, Joe and Tommy were sharing their old room and Tony and Rick were sharing Rick/Tommy's old room.

Rick and his high-school sweetheart Jessica had turned up an hour ago and both ran straight for Kate and Grace (after Martha and Richard, of course). Kate had been both excited and nervous of Tony meeting Rick, she had no idea why she felt like she was introducing her _boyfriend_ to her family, but she did. Tony almost crapped his pants when Rick greeted him. He was taller and more musclely than Tony could have ever imagined! As Jessica, a blonde haired, blue eyed beauty pulled Kate into a warm embrace, Rick pulled Tony into a bear hug. Tony tried not to wince in pain as Rick's giant meaty hand collided with his back.

Tony started to wonder where Kate got her shortness from because all her family seemed to be giants.

But, just like she knew he would, Rick loved Tony from the moment he met him. They had bonded almost instantly over their mutal love for _James Bond. _It had taken both Kate _and_ Jessica to stop Rick from beating the crap out of Joe once he found out he had blanked Kate all night and hadn't once even looked, let alone asked about Grace.

Rick had hated Joe since Joe could walk and talk. He was disrespectful and always thought he knew best and he wasn't afraid of letting anybody know it. He couldn't fault the boy for the respect he had for their parents, but the way Joe would treat both Kate and Rachael made him sick. He was more misoginistic and old fashioned than their father. Both of the twins, Joe and Tommy, were like that, but Tommy was nowhere near the extent his twin. People actually liked Tommy. He was funny and kind and he loved Kate and Grace, even though he didn't agree with Kate's choices. But unlike Joe, he accepted, respected and most importantly, supported them.

It was a warm summer night and Kate sat at a chair on her parents deck, watching Rachael and Jessica play with Grace on the swing at the other end of the garden and all the men and significant others playing a rather heated game of soccer whilst her mother bustled about the kitchen (she had recently shooed Kate out of there).

"Hey Katie" Kate heard a voice behind her as Rick took a seat opposite her.

"Hey" Kate smiled warmly.

"You're looking good, a little skinny but better than I expected" he said with a honest, caring tone. "Y'know, when Rach told me you had an accident, I was gonna take time off and come and look after you. I would have gone AWOL if she didn't convince me you didn't need it" he looked over at Tony who had just tackled Joe and won the ball. Joe was less than impressed.

"I know, and it means a lot that you care that much" Kate's eyes flitted to Joe for almost a second before back to her oldest brother.

"I don't know what I would have done if I'd seen you in that state, Katie. I would have lost it" he clenched his fist as pictures of a beaten Kate entered his mind. "I honestly wasn't too sure about him" Rick spoke again, looking over at Tony who was pulling a funny face in Grace's direction before the soccer ball bounced off the back of his head. "Y'know, its a bit odd when you hear about some 19 year old boy hanging around your baby sister and her kid, and wanting _nothing_ in return. I thought he must really want to bang you if he's laying down all this groundwork but then after I heard that he stuck by you after the attack, I started to think differently and now, after meeting him he does seem like the real deal"

"I'm glad you like him" Kate smiled. "He really is amazing and he's my best friend and I don't think I'd be able to choose between the two of you... Well, I would but I don't think you'd like the answer"

"I'd never do that to you, Katie. You know that. I just... you're my little sister, y'know, my _baby_ sister. I worry about you, I worry about all you guys but you're all grown up and you're giving me reasons to worry less... Which them makes me worry even more" Rick laughed, shaking his head.

"You're gonna be an amazing father one day, you know that, right?" Kate smiled at her brother who suddenly flashed a huge smile. "What?" Kate asked.

"Okay, I'm not supposed to say anything to anyone yet but everyone knows you're my favourite. Jess is pregnant!" He smiled brightly. "I'm gonna be a Daddy!"

"Oh my God!" Kate exclaimed in a hushed tone. "Congrats!" She pulled her brother into a hug.

"She's not far gone, only a month or so along. We've not told anybody yet and we're gonna tell mom and dad tomorrow as an anniversary present. We've been trying for almost three years, and as soon as we consider giving up it just happens!" Rick exclaimed again.

"Oh Rick! I'm so happy for you both! You're gonna make amazing parents, I just know it!"

"Yeah, its my turn to surprise mom and dad with a pregnancy, so don't you go announcing another one" Rick laughed.

"Oh yeah, who am I going to have been doing in order to make a baby. A single teenage mom isn't really high on the hot scale, Ricky" Kate laughed, trying to hide the sadness in her tone.

Rick shrugged and threw his head in the direction of Tony, who was currently trying to avoid Tommy's girlfriends blatant flirting.

"Tony's my best friend! And he doesn't even find me attractive in that way anyway!"

"You keep telling yourself that, Katie. I've seen the way the pair of you gaze at each other. The only thing that's missing is the drool and the cartoon eyes popping out of your heads!"

"You know, I still don't understand why my mom and dad don't let you and Ricky share a bed. You've been together since you were 15!" Rachael exclaimed, bouncing Grace on her lap as the three women and Grace sat on Kate's bed like they did when they were kids.

"They've never really said otherwise, well, not since Rick moved out, we just choose to respect your mom and dad" Jessica shrugged.

"Mom told me I wasn't allowed to share a room with Mark!" Rachael scoffed, playing with Grace's arms and waving them in the air.

"That's because mom knows what you're like!" Kate laughed.

"Yeah well, with somebody that looks like he was chiselled by angels, you can't really blame me!" Rachael sighed like a love-sick puppy.

"Speaking of people who look like they were_ chiselled by angels_" Jessica cleared her throat and looked to Kate. "What's the deal with you and that Tony guy?"

Kate rolled her eyes. She expected this from Rachael but not from Jessica.

"He's my best friend" Kate shrugged, picking at the imaginary lint on her bedsheets.

"_Just_ your best friend?" Jessica asked, trying to push the girl who was like her adopted little sister.

"Yeah. Why is that so hard to believe?" Kate started to get defensive. "Just because I'm a single teenage mother doesn't mean I'm incapable of making, or having, friends, y'know!"

"I didn't mean it that way, Kate" Jessica clarified. "Its just, the way you guys stare at one another-"

"-you've been spending too much time with Rick!"

"She's got a valid point, Katie" Rachael piped up. "Like, Tony is super hot, you can't not look at him in that way"

"Well I don't, okay?!" Kate growled, thankful that Grace chose that moment in time to get restless. "Can we just drop it now, please?" She asked, taking her daughter from her sister and walking out of her room and heading to the kitchen.

Why did her family feel the need to make a big deal of Tony? Kate felt like they were mocking her somehow, despite knowing full well that nobody in her family (except maybe Joe) was capable of that. But still, they were starting to annoy her. And even though she wouldn't admit it, give her false hope. Tony was her friend, nothing more and that's how it would stay. Whether she liked it or not. Kate pushed all the thoughts out of her mind as she walked into the kitchen to find her father sat at the table, nursing a whiskey before bed. Kate suddenly felt nostalgic, missing the way she would walk into her kitchen late at night as a kid, to find her father sitting at the big round wooden table drinking a whiskey (neat, three fingers). How he'd extend his arm and pull her in to sit in his lap and how they'd stay up for hours just talking. How she would pour her heart out to him and he would listen to every word and give her advice. How he'd make her laugh so hard her hot chocolate would come out of her nose. How, on more than one occasion, they'd fall asleep at the table. That had stopped once Kate had fallen pregnant, but Kate felt that maybe, even just for tonight, she would relive the happiest times of her childhood. And she did.

**_Phew, that was a long chapter! I hope you guys liked it anyway! Some people have been asking about Kate's family and I hope this satisfied you! I used the same sort of family members/dynamics from my earlier Tate fic (in case anyone was wondering) ((also I picture Jessica to look like Jessica Capshaw just like I did in the previous fic)). I had to stop myself from writing more to this chapter because I didn't want it to be too long, sorry, but it will all be in the next chapter - which should hopefully be up soon (if my God awful cold doesn't kill me first!)_**

**_What do you think of Kate's family? Do you think things are gonna go smoothly this weekend? What about Tony finally coming to the realisation he likes Kate? Good or bad? (I kinda feel that was a bit weak but whatever I don't care ehehehehe)_**

**_Okay, shutting up now. Thank you guys for your reviews. I love them all! xo_**


	15. Chapter 15

It was a little after 6 when Kate woke up. The sun was just starting to pour in through the curtains leaving her bedroom with a light pink glow. Waking up at 6 was a normal, everyday occurrence for Kate and Grace, so it was no surprise that she heard Grace mumbling to herself from her travel cot.

Knowing Grace would be hungry, Kate carefully extracted herself from her sister's grip (Rachael was a spooner and would spoon anybody and everybody in her sleep) as not to wake her and tiptoed across her bedroom to her daughter. Kate almost dropped the child in shock when she saw Jessica on the other side Rachael. No wonder her back was hurting, the three girls had crammed into a small double bed and fallen asleep.

"Good morning beautiful" Kate whispered into Grace's ear as she made her way out of her bedroom.

Grace looked up at her mother with big, sleepy eyes as she brought a chubby, slobbery hand up to Kate's cheek. As Kate snuck through the silent house, she stopped outside her brothers bedroom, pressing an ear to the door in hopes she could hear Tony sleeping. When grace started to get restless, Kate quickly made her way down the second flight of stairs and headed for the kitchen.

With Grace babbling happily to herself in the highchair, munching on a bowl of fruit, Kate turned in search of coffee. She couldn't help the goofy smile that spread across her face as she heard the footfalls she knew so well.

"Morning" Kate smiled, turning to face Tony as her mug was filling with coffee.

"Morning" Tony smiled back, kissing the top of Grace's head and ruffling her hair.

"How did you sleep?" Kate asked, handing over the mug of coffee that was originally hers to Tony.

"I'd like to say good, but your brother snores like a drunken sailor and a walrus' love child!" Tony said with a laugh, taking the mug from Kate. "What about you?"

"When you're sharing a bed with Rachael, you're lucky if you even get an hour's sleep" Kate shrugged, she was used to both sleeping with Rachael and not getting much sleep. "I was just gonna make some pancakes, you want any?"

"Sure!"

Kate and Tony moved about her parents' kitchen in a perfect tandem. The air was thick with flour and Tony had gotten more flour over himself than he had into the mix. It all seemed so domestic, the two of them preparing breakfast together in a big house, a happy babbling child in the background. Not that Kate, nor Tony were complaining. They both secretly liked the domesticity and how right it felt. Seeing that Kate was still immaculate compared to him, Tony threw a handful of flour over Kate. Kate stood shocked for a few moments before deciding Tony had started a war. She narrowed her eyes in his direction, trying to hide the cheeky smirk that was making its way onto her face as she clumped together some left over batter before throwing it at Tony.

"Oh its on now!" Tony said with a laugh as Kate took off, letting out a girlish scream when Tony grabbed her by the waist and pulled her back.

As Kate laughed and pleaded with Tony to let her go, Tony smeared another handful of flour over Kate's face. Still stuck in Tony's strong arms, Kate tried to reach out for the bottle of washing up liquid on the sink. Just as her fingers grazed the blue bottle, she felt something cold and sticky goop down her back.

"Oh you are _so_ dead!" Kate laughed in shock as the egg Tony had just cracked on her head began to drip down her legs.

As Tony ran to find cover, Kate grabbed the bottle of washing up liquid and began to chase Tony around the table, ignoring his pleas for a 'truce' and how sorry he was. Grace laughed and clapped her hands as she watched her mother chasing Tony around the room like something from _Tom and Jerry_. Grace herself was covered in flour but she could easily be cleaned with a baby wipe, Tony and Kate on the other hand...

"Please Kate, I'm sorry" Tony stopped running and looked down at Kate with honest eyes.

Kate's hair was matted to her head in a mix of flour and egg and her face was covered with white flour and egg yolk too. With a cheeky smile, Kate flicked the cap of the washing liquid bottle open and squeezed it in Tony's direction. Now it was her turn to run again. As Kate took off, laughing and telling Tony now they could have a truce, she hadn't noticed her mother come down the stairs. Tony caught up with Kate and wrapped his arms around her waist, lifting her off the ground. Kate continued to squeeze the bottle over her shoulder and she squealed for Tony to put her down.

"**CAITLIN LEIGH TODD!**" Martha Todd's stern voice ripped the two teenagers from their laughter.

Tony dropped Kate to the floor in shock as Martha looked at the two of them. He could hear Kate sniggering next to him under her mothers glare before she let out a laugh which turned into full blown hysterics.

"Look at the state of the pair of you!" Martha scolded, snapping at Kate again as Kate was laughing uncontrollably. "Out, out!" She shooed them out the back door onto the deck. "Hose yourselves off before you come back inside!"

Still laughing, Kate led Tony down into the garden and towards the bright yellow hose. She turned on the hose and began to spray Tony with the freezing water, resulting in Tony screaming like a girl.

"Its just a bit of water, Tony!" Kate laughed again, tears streaming down her floury face.

"Yeah but it's cold" Tony shied away from the water.

"Well, you should have thought about that before you started a food fight!" Kate raised her white brow and stuck her hand on her hip.

"I don't care!" Tony shied away from the spray once more, before running and hiding behind a tree.

"Tony, get back here!" Kate tried to sound stern, but she just laughed as Tony peaked his head around the giant trunk.

"No" he replied, popping his head back and out of Kate's vision.

"Tony, don't make me drag you!"

Kate waited for a few moments before she walked up to the tree, hose in hand and sprayed Tony again. Tony ran from the tree, his skin all goose-bumpy and dripping wet.

"Katie stop!" He squealed like a girl again as Kate sprayed his retreating back.

"Just stay still and it'll all be over quicker!" Kate continued to chase Tony around the garden, now in full blown mother mode.

Kate's father had now joined Martha in the kitchen and they both watched their daughter chasing Tony around the garden with a hose. As well as being covered in flour, eggs, pancake mix and washing up liquid, they were both now covered in mud and laughing like little kids. As angry as Martha and Richard wanted to be right now, they couldn't find it in them. This was the happiest they had seen Kate in years. She was almost back to her old self. Richard wrapped his arm around his wife's waist and pressed a kiss to her cheek as Tony shoved the hose down Kate's top. Martha and Richard watched Kate and Tony for a few more minutes before they decided to take action. As nice as it was to see Kate and Tony laughing and having fun, they were now beginning to trudge up Martha's flower beds, so Martha filled up a bucket of water before throwing it over the two, ending their little war.

Kate and Tony stood side by side as Kate's father sprayed the pair of them with the hose before letting them back inside the house.

With today being Martha and Richard's 30th wedding anniversary, the whole family was going out for a meal. Or so Martha and Richard thought. They had no idea their kids had a surprise party for them planned with all their friends and family attending.

Kate was up in her bedroom with Rachael, Jessica and Tommy's girlfriend Hannah getting ready. It was like the typical, girls night out. The music was blasting and they were all chatting happily amongst themselves as they did their hair and makeup.

Kate was sat on the floor between Rachael's legs as her sister curled Kate's hair. Kate tried her best to zone out of the conversation the other three were having, partly because two of them were talking about sex with her brothers and partly because she felt awkward, and quite frankly left out. She didn't have a sex life she could chat about.

"What about you, Kate?" Hannah asked. She really wasn't the brightest spark. Pretty, but not smart. "If all the boys at Ohio State look like Tony, I'm sure you have a few juicy stories to share" she laughed. Not in a sarcastic or nasty way. In a complete airhead way.

"Um nope" Kate laughed, looking at her sister in the mirror. "I'm boring. No stories to tell"

"Surely you have one?"

"Nope. Sorry"

"Well, you're clearly not a virgin. I mean, you have a baby. Or was that really bad sex?"

"I just, I don't wanna talk about it" Kate sighed, Rachael, the only person besides Kate in the room who knew the truth, squeezed Kate's shoulder as she noticed her little sister had tensed up.

"I've had some bad sex in my day but I don't get defensive about it!" Hannah huffed as she rubbed false tan onto her leg.

"Maybe she just doesn't want to talk about it!" Rachael shot back, narrowing her eyes at the girl.

"Jeez" Hannah held up her hands. "If I'd have known she'd be so touchy about one bad bang I would have just left her out".

"I'm not touchy over a _bad bang_" Kate spat, turning to face Hannah.

"Katie, forget about it" Rachael grabbed Kate's hand as she stood up, knowing that Kate would say something she would regret.

"Well, clearly, _you are_" Hannah smirked at Kate, crossing her arms over her chest. "It was one bad bang, get over it!"

"I was raped you idiot! That's why I'm so _touchy_!" Kate screamed back at her. Kate immediately regretted the words. She brought both her hands to cover her mouth and, like she had earlier that day, stumbled backwards and fell into Rachael.

Both Jessica and Hannah stood staring at Kate, their mouths dropped open with wide eyes. Completely and utterly in shock. Kate felt Rachael's arms wrap around her waist and she pushed her sister away before running into the bathroom and throwing up in the toilet.

"Well done you stupid cow!" Rachael growled, pushing past a dumbstruck Hannah. "I'll go" she added, making sure the other two, mainly Hannah, stayed where they were. Rachael tried to get into the bathroom but the door was locked. She could hear Kate's cries and retching, even over the gush of the shower. Rachael shot another evil look towards Hannah before she left Kate's bedroom, deciding to go through her own and enter the bathroom that way.

Kate's heart was pounding against her chest harder and harder as she felt the bile rise further and further up her throat. She couldn't believe she had just done that. She wanted to curl up into a ball and disappear. As she heard her sister knocking on the other door, she threw up once again. Within seconds, Rachael was at Kate's side, one hand rubbing soothing circles on her back, the other holding her hair back. Kate pushed her sister off her, wiping her mouth and her face in the mirror before taking a deep, steadying breath and walking back out into her bedroom with nothing but a 'sorry about that' and continued to get ready.

It had been awkward to say the least, let alone weird. Kate had gone back out and pretended like nothing had happened. Shutting the three girls down completely if any of them asked if she was okay. Kate drove to the surprise party in her car, Tony in the passenger seat and Grace in the back. She was quiet and strange and Tony picked up on it.

"Kate?" He asked, dressed in his sharpest navy blue suit paired with a baby blue shirt and black tie. It was a formal occasion he was told. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine" Kate replied, not taking her eyes off the road.

"Are you sure?" Tony asked. He knew when Kate was lying, and right now it was obvious.

"Yeah. I'm fine, Tony" Kate replied, a little harsher than she meant it.

The rest of the drive to the restaurant was awkward and silent. The weekend before, Kate's doctor had given her a special cast which she could remove as her arm was healing quickly, which tonight, Kate had gone without. She was wearing a bright yellow summer dress which ended halfway up her tanned, toned thighs. The waistband of the dress was cross-stitched, with yellow stars stitched around the middle of it, the little holes revealing tiny parts Kate's tanned stomach. Her hair was hanging in loose dark brown waves down her back and she had more makeup on than usual. She looked nothing like the usual Kate. And with the sun setting and illuminating her perfectly, Tony couldn't help but keep his eyes off her. She was beautiful on an average day, but right now, as the sun bounced off her soft, tanned skin, Tony felt his heart begin to skip. Oh boy did he like Kate Todd.

After everyone had surprised Kate's parents, the party began. Kate had avoided Rachael, Jessica and Hannah as best she could. She sat at the table for a while with Grace in her lap but she could feel the three women throughout the party staring at her she started to feel dizzy, like she was somehow drowning and bile began to rise up her chest once again. Kate handed the baby to Tony before she ran away from the secluded table in the corner, quickly grabbing a bottle of vodka as she passed the bar.

Tony had been worried about her all night, and now, with Kate just rushing off like that, Tony knew he couldn't just sit by and let her lie to him. He handed the child to Kate's aunt at the table, who looked just as confused as he did, before he ran after her. He checked the bathroom and the back garden and there was no sign of her. He was seriously beginning to panic when he called Kate and it went straight to voice mail. He went back inside the party and did another sweep, and still couldn't find Kate anywhere. It had been more than 15 minutes since Kate had ran off and there was no sign of her anywhere.

Tony scrubbed his face with his hands as he exhaled deeply. He suddenly heard the sounds of frustrated cursing in the distance and turned to see a tiny orange light. Tony walked to the light and managed to make out Kate's bright yellow dress in the pitch black darkness. Tony pulled off his suit jacket and lay it on the ground as he sat down next to Kate.

"Go away, Tony!" Kate slurred, a half-empty bottle of vodka in one hand and a lit cigarette in the other.

Tony just ignored her as he cracked his knuckles.

"I said go away!" Kate snapped at Tony, the vodka sloshing about in the bottle as she brought the cigarette to her lips and took a deep drag.

Tony pulled the cancer stick from between Kate's lips and threw it onto the damp grass beside them.

"Hey! That was mine!" Kate growled again, taking a long drink from her bottle before opening the packet and taking another cigarette out.

"You gonna tell me what's wrong?" Tony asked, watching Kate drunkenly fumble with trying to light her fresh cigarette between her lips.

"You gonna leave me alone?" Kate quipped back.

"No"

"Then you've got your answer!" Kate snapped. "Fuck!" She growled, the lighter she stole from some random relative's pocket not lighting.

"Here" Tony sighed, taking the lighter from Kate and lighting her cigarette for her.

Kate took another deep, long drag on the cancerous stick before she blew out a long line of smoke. She looked at the orange light between her fingers for a few moments, watching the orange light burn the white paper down before she turned to look at Tony. He was looking down at her, his eyes full of worry and pleading with her to tell him what was wrong.

"Its just, something happened" Kate sighed shakily, taking one final toke on the cigarette before holding it out to Tony.

"Yeah, I gathered that" Tony laughed, taking the cigarette from Kate and throwing it in the same direction as the other one.

Kate seemed angry for a few moments before she turned back to her bottle and took another swig.

"They know" Kate tried to stifle her tears. "They all know!" She sobbed.

Tony brought his arm around Kate's shoulder and pulled her close to his chest. He could feel the goose bumps on her arm as the wind blew a cool night breeze, but he figured she couldn't feel the cold thanks to the amount of vodka coursing through her system.

"I'm scared, Tony!" Kate cried against his chest. "I'm scared every single day of my life. I'm scared of everything. I'm scared I will fail, that I'll fail Gracie and my family. I'm scared every night I go to bed and I hear a noise because I think its Rob coming to get me or the guy who mugged me. I'm scared that you will run. That one day I will wake up and you will be gone, that you'll have opened your eyes and realised I'm not worth it. I'm just, scared, Tony. Of everything. The minute I think I'm getting my life together, it all comes crashing down. I try to be strong and I try to act like I'm okay, but I can't do it anymore Tony. I can't!" Kate sobbed into Tony's chest as he gently rocked her back and forth, kissing the top of her head and stroking her hair.

His heart was breaking for her right now. He hated that she was scared and thought so little of herself. She had every right to be scared, sure but he just hated that she felt it.

"Ssshhhhh, Kate" Tony cooed. "Its okay" he kissed her temple, her tears had already soaked through his shirt and onto his chest. "I'm here for you, okay? You know I'm never going to let anything or anyone hurt you again. And I am never _ever_ going anywhere. I promise you. You are worth it, Kate. You are worth so much. You are amazing. If anything, it should be _me_ who should be worried about waking up one day and not finding _you_ there. I know its hard, but you've got to believe me, Katie and you've got to believe in yourself, otherwise things aren't going to get better. They're just going to get worse" Tony kissed her head again.

They sat in silence for a few minutes until Kate's drunken sobs subsided. Tony continued to gently rock Kate back and forth in a calming, soothing manner and whisper in her ear, much like he did with Grace whenever he was trying to get her to stop crying. Her head lay on his chest, his heartbeat lulling her almost to sleep. After a few more moments, they found themselves lying down flat on the grassy hill towards the back of the restaurant, looking up at the stars. Tony had pulled his jacket over Kate's arms before she snuggled back into him. Her head rested in the crook of his shoulder blade and her arms on his chest as his arms wrapped around her tightly. Kate wrapped one of her bare legs around Tony's with a giggle, her sandals long discarded. As they lay on the grass, their bodies entwined, Tony started to point out constellations to Kate. Tony had no idea what he was doing, he knew one or two from when his mother had shown him as a child, but he had no idea about the random ones he was naming, or if they were even real for that matter. Not that it mattered to Kate, she was seeing double and the world was spinning.

After a couple more minutes, Kate had fallen asleep on Tony, so Tony decided it was time to take her home. He carefully scooped her up and carried her towards the car. As he placed Kate in the back seat, he heard the sound of feet crunching the gravely path.

"Is she okay?" He heard Rachael ask.

"For now" Tony sighed sadly, closing the car door.

Rachael was stood with a sleeping Grace in her arms, Hannah and Jessica a few steps behind her.

"What, what happened?" Rachael asked, putting the sleeping child in her car seat as Tony help the car door open.

"She stole a bottle of vodka and drank half of it in 15 minutes, cried a lot then fell asleep" Tony shrugged, giving them the quick version. "Truth be told" Tony sighed, shutting the car door. "I'm worried about her. I have been for a while. Ever since she told me"

"You know?" Rachael asked, her eyebrows almost disappearing into her hairline.

"Yeah. She was a bit loopy from her pain meds just after the attack and it slipped out" he sighed, crossing his arms across his chest. "I've told her to talk to somebody about it but she just shuts me down and tells me she's fine. She bottles everything up and then explodes" Tony pinched the bridge of his nose, trying to hold back his tears.

Rachael felt a lump in her throat. It was bad enough to know her sister was suffering, but was too stubborn to do anything about it, but to see Tony's reaction. To see how much he cared about Kate, as much as she did, that was a shock. Of course, she knew he cared about her a lot, but she was standing before an almost broken, defeated man who was scared and felt so useless and she had no idea how to react.

"I can try and talk to her again tomorrow morning, although I doubt that's gonna be any good" Rachael sighed. "She's been this way all her life, she bottles her emotions up and then she explodes. We used to joke about it and laugh when it was over stupid things 'oh here comes Mount Katie, better take cover before she explodes!'" Rachael said with a faint laugh of the memory; the way they'd all compare her to a volcano. "But its serious now and we're all worried about her"

"I'm really sorry!" Hannah spoke up, her voice was shaky and full of guilt.

"Its not your fault" Tony half smiled. It really wasn't, even if she had pushed Kate and made fun of her.

"Is everything okay?" Martha's voice sounded, cutting everybody like a knife.

"Yeah" Rachael sniffled, wiping her eyes quickly. "Everything's fine Mom"

"Are you sure? And what happened with Katie? Your Aunt June said she just ran off over an hour ago and never came back"

Tony and Rachael both stepped in front of the car window, trying to shield Martha from a drunken Kate in the back seat.

"Kate's fine" Tony smiled. "She's just feeling a bit under the weather. Overtired I think" he smiled again. "She fell asleep in the car before so I'm just gonna take her and Grace home"

"Oh, well, thank you for a lovely evening" Martha smiled, pulling Tony in for a hug and kiss on the cheek.

"Glad you enjoyed it, Mrs Todd" Tony smiled again.

"I've told you, call me Martha" she chuckled. "I'll see you in the morning then" she added before stumbling back inside with the help of Jessica and Hannah. It was safe to say Martha Todd had had one too many glasses of wine tonight.

"Are you okay to drive?" Rachael asked once they were alone again.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I'll just get her home and put her to bed"

"Okay" Rachael hummed before hugging Tony goodnight and telling him to phone her and let him know they were all home safely.

Once Tony had put Grace to bed, he went back down to the car to retrieve a now awake, but almost too drunk to move, Kate. It was more than a struggle to get her up not one, but two, flights of stairs, but after a lot of falls and fumbles, they finally made it. Tony helped Kate to her bed before he went to leave the room.

"I need my 'jamas" Kate slurred in both a drunken and a sleepy state.

"Can't you just sleep in that?" Tony asked.

"No" Kate sat up. "I need my 'jamas"

"Okay" Tony replied, rooting around in Kate's case for her pyjamas. He only managed to find a baggy t-shirt, which was in fact his gray Ohio State tee which he thought had gone missing three weeks ago. "This okay?" He asked, holding up the item of clothing.

"Perfect!" Kate smiled a goofy grin.

Tony handed her the shirt but she just looked up at him as though he were stupid.

"You gotta help me put it on" she turned so her back was to Tony. "Unzip me".

Tony hesitated for a few seconds before he did as he was instructed. As he unzipped Kate, he heard a few child-like giggles escape her lips.

"Okay, you got it from here?" Tony asked.

"I dunno" Kate shrugged, her dress falling from her shoulders to reveal a black lacy bra.

"Kate!" Tony exclaimed, turning around and shielding his eyes.

"What?" Kate asked, pouting even though he couldn't see her. "Am I really that gross to look at?" She asked in a sulky tone.

"No!" Tony answered way too quickly.

"Then why did you turn away like you has just seen your naked Grandma?"

"Because" Tony replied. "You're my friend and I respect you"

"Liar" Kate sulked again.

"I am not!" Tony defended himself. He really wasn't. He felt something hit the back of his head and bit his lip when he realised it was her bra. Oh good Lord she was testing him tonight!

Out of the corner of his eye he saw Kate wobbling about, trying to kick her dress from around her feet. He heard a loud thump and then Kate breaking into a fit of giggles, much like she had earlier in the morning. Tony turned to find Kate lying on the floor, the gray t-shirt pulled over her and her bright yellow dress still around her feet. Tony knelt down to help Kate up, sitting her on the edge of her bed. Tony's fingers ghosted down Kate's soft, silky legs before he removed the dress from her ankles, hanging it over the back of a chair.

"Okay, you ready for bed now?" Tony asked.

"Nope. Makeup" Kate pointed towards the packet of wipes on her desk.

Tony grabbed the wiped and sat on the bed facing Kate, his knees touching her own.

"You need me to do this?" Tony asked, holding a wipe between his fingers. "Okay. Hold still" he smiled as Kate nodded. One of Tony's hands went behind Kate's head, resting between the bottom of her head and her neck, supporting Kate's head and holding it up. His other one wiped at Kate's skin gently. He hadn't noticed until they got home that her cheeks were stained with black mascara tracks from her crying. He wiped her face clean and kissed the tip of her nose. "Next?" He asked, assuming that there would probably be more to come.

"Hair" Kate replied, pointing towards her hairbrush and a pile of hair bobbles. Tony grabbed the brush and began to brush Kate's hair. He had done it a few times when she first returned from hospital so he assumed he knew what he was doing. "Oooowww!" Kate cried, swatting Tony's hand away and carrying on herself. Kate managed to brush her hair and tie it back into a messy bun before looking at Tony.

"Teeth?" He asked.

"Teeth" Kate nodded.

Tony helped Kate stand up and walk to the bathroom, giggling as her knees gave way. After putting toothpaste on both their brushes, Tony handed Kate her brush and they both proceeded to brush their teeth. Well, Tony did. Kate refused to do so until he had left the room. Once finished, Tony helped her back into bed.

"Okay, night night Kate" Tony smiled, pulling the duvet up to her chin and kissing the top of her head.

"Where you goin'?" Kate slurred again, this time due to the fact she was already losing her battle with sleep.

"Um, to bed" Tony replied with a laugh as he switched Kate's bedroom light off.

"Stay" Kate hummed. "Please" she added, noticing Tony's hesitation.

"Kate-"

"-pleaseeeeee?" She asked once again, sitting up in bed and looking at him, staring right into his eyes and begging, even through the pitch black night.

"Fine" Tony sighed. He figured he would wait until Kate fell asleep and then sneak out of the room.

"Yay!" Kate smiled, moving the duvet cover over and exposing the empty half of the bed.

Tony climbed into the bed next to Kate, only to receive a look of disgust, accompanied by a 'no'. When Tony replied that he thought Kate wanted him to sleep there, she simply told him that she did but she didn't want him to wear his suit to bed. After some hesitation and a lot of coaxing, Tony stripped down to his boxers before he climbed back into Kate's bed. He tried to keep some distance between them, he needed to, for not only Kate's sake, but for his own. He liked her, a lot, and they were both practically naked, sharing a bed in her parents' home. But Kate snuggled into him as close as she could the minute the mattress shifted. She pulled Tony's arm across her body before she turned to face him, wrapping her own arm around him. Tony froze. There noses were touching and she had wrapped one of her legs around his waist. Kate hadn't picked up on Tony's new frozen state as she snuggled down the bed a bit.

"Tony?" Kate asked, her voice thick with sleep.

"Y-yeah, Kate?" Tony replied.

"Will you be here when I wake up?"

Tony was silent for a few moments contemplating his answer. Did she mean in her bed or just in general?

"Yeah"

"Do you promise?" Kate yawned.

"Cross my heart and hope to die" Tony placed a soft kiss on Kate's forehead. "I promise"

Kate hummed an inaudible response before she fell asleep. Tony had planned on getting up and sneaking downstairs after Kate fell asleep but he was too comfortable and too tired to move. He couldn't move even if he wanted to. Not two minutes after Kate had fallen into a deep slumber, Tony had too. Neither of them woke when Rachael returned in the early hours of the morning, opting to go and sleep with Mark instead, rather than waking her sister up. And besides, Kate and Tony looked far too adorable all snuggled up together, both of them smiling happily in their sleep.

_**Uuuuuummmm okay, I know this chapter was long and bittersweet and a lot happened but I hope you all liked it anyway. There was this whole other bit in the middle I had where Kate and Tony were on their way to pick up Kate's Grandma (who would turn out to be really young and wear leather pants and jacket with an AD/DC t-shirt and have a whole other back story) and run into three of Kate's old 'friends', and the one that outed her pregnancy in front of the whole school, but I figured that was too long and confusing to add even more characters. But if you're interested I will work them into the next chapter, lemme know! **_

_**Okay so Kate blabbed, uh oh! Then got really drunk and cutsie with Tony (aw). How do you think she is going to react in the morning? Will Kate finally tell her mum and dad? Should she even tell them? Please let me know. Thank you for all your awesome reviews! You guys seriously are the best, especially if you're still reading me drivell on right now!**_

_**Oh, and the dress Kate was wearing is real, incase anyone was wondering. Here is a link to a picture of it:) **_

_** /entry/44161742**_

_**Gina xo**_


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